"We are in the middle of the
eighth sweet potato season," says Christian Hurni of Batati Ltd. After last year was quite bad, with the cold, wet and messed up summer, this year the situation looks quite different. The warm and dry summer has been optimal for sweet potato development, Hurni says. "Good bathing weather is good sweet potato weather," says Simon van der Veer, co-owner of Batati Ltd. "As a result, the yield has been above average. We had to be careful that the tubers did not get too big. Large tubers, weighing more than 850 grams are too big for the market, and industry sales are limited by this as well," Hurni adds.
"This year, sales in the stores started as early as September 19, more than a month earlier than last year This also means, however, that harvesting started as early as September 1 so that curing could be completed. The first batches were washed and picked in time, before the first day of sales," says Hurni, who manages day-to-day business for Batati Ltd in Fräschels. Sales peaks occur during retail promotions and over the holidays in December.
"The additional costs for young plants, fertilizer and energy have been manageable so far due to the longer-term contracts, but it all adds up to a considerable amount in the end," van der Veer continues. Other areas and regions in Europe are probably being hit harder at the moment than Switzerland, where inflation is being curbed somewhat by the different currency. We look forward to the coming weeks and this year's sales. "It is probably foreseeable that we will not reach the sales level of the past years, as more is being consumed away from home again than during the pandemic. Whether Swiss consumers will switch to the cheaper imported product or to the even cheaper potato is difficult to judge at the moment. Therefore, accurate forecasts are not really possible at present.''
Trial with small-sized tubers
Besides the two business owners Christian Hurni and Simon van der Veer, there are nine other farms that produce the sweet potatoes, which are marketed through Batati Ltd. Together, the areas for the coming year are determined at the beginning of winter. At the moment, only the common orange-fleshed Beauregard variety is being cultivated.
"What is special this year, is that we are able to trial packed Ünique sweet potatoes in a small format at Coop." Van der Veer: "We are curious to see how consumers react to this. We of course hope it will be a success."
Export to neighboring countries
In addition to supplying the Swiss domestic market, Batati also receives inquiries from abroad. "In the vast majority of cases, it's about cultivation or processing technology. Exporting our sweet potatoes would of course be a nice idea, especially since other agricultural products such as cheese and chocolate have a large following around the world. Sweet potatoes, on the other hand, are produced in many other countries, and at the end of the day it is always a question of price. Unfortunately, the signs aren't good for our sweet potatoes," Hurni claims. "But we are always available for inquiries," van der Veer concludes.
Pictures: Batati Ltd.
For more information:
Christian Hurni & Simon van der Veer
Batati GmbH
Berg 50
3284 Fräschels
simon@batati.ch
www.batati.ch