Crop & Food Research investments manager Tracy Thompson says the world’s four largest potato processors have signed up for the calculator, which is the first product of business unit CropLogic™.
“We are getting a great deal of interest in this tool as people hear about what it can do and this bodes well for the sale of our business unit,” he says. “We are spinning off CropLogic as a separate company to accelerate the development of this promising start-up and to maximise the opportunities it so clearly has.”

Initial use of the potato calculator by growers and processors has shown savings in fertiliser and water inputs can be made. The benefits are four-fold, with:

• crop applications optimised,
• input costs falling,
• crop quality and yield improving and
• returns optimised.

The potato calculator is a good in-season diagnostic tool and it helps to take the guesswork out of managing a crop. It is used for planting and harvest decisions and to schedule fertiliser and irrigation.
Jeremy Carter is CropLogic’s agronomy manager and works closely with those who use the calculator. He says that growers find it easy to use and like that they can put a dollar value against fertiliser and water inputs and that they can make educated decisions about what their crops need.

CropLogic™ Incubator Award finalist

The potato calculator CropLogic™ was one of three finalists named in the 2008 Gen-i New Zealand Incubator Awards category for Start-Up Exporter of the Year. CropLogic provides internet based supply management and forecasting services to food processors, the fresh produce supply chain and crop management advice to their suppliers. It delivers improved quality and yield, better economic returns and a reduced environmental footprint.

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