It takes a special sort of individual – and a great deal of hard work – to grow a business from scratch and then continue to fi nd new opportunities to take it forward

Saving money is at the top of most growers’ agendas, particularly when it comes to the potentially high costs of running controlled atmosphere stores. Couple that with agriculture’s determination to save energy for environmental reasons and progress in refrigeration technology is always welcome.

The experienced team at Orchard Cooling, which has seen a strong start to business since launching four years ago, has developed a new approach to defrosting cold store coolers that can save growers thousands of pounds by reducing their energy consumption.

The company, set up in March 2017 by former International Controlled Atmosphere (ICA) employees Sean Macoy, Rob Burbridge and Dave Reynolds, has made sure the technology is fully tried and tested before launching it on the market.

Working in collaboration with a local grower, the company has spent the past two seasons trialing the innovative approach to the defrosting challenge, developed in-house by sales and design expert Paul Kennett.

He explained: “After using this arrangement for two storage seasons we can show a 75% saving on the amount of energy used by Orchard Cooling’s warm fl uid defrosting method using air source heat pump technology as part of a secondary cooling system.”

While calculating the exact saving is a complex business and depends on a number of factors, Orchard Cooling estimates that switching to air source heat pump defrosting can save close to £8,000 per year based on an eight-store set up.

While using 12kW in-line electric defrost heaters set for three defrosts a day would cost up to £5,443 over a six-month period, the same calculations on a system using air source heat pump defrosting would cost just £1,569.

“Incorporating air source heat pumps is an effi cient method of warming the glycol for warm fl uid defrosting. The heat pump unit is connected with small bore pipework fl ow and return to the store valve stations and maintains a high density insulated vessel containing glycol at a stable temperature ready to defrost the stores,” he went on.

The innovative system is not on off er as an ‘added extra’ from Orchard Cooling but is instead set to

NEW APPROACH TO DEFROSTING

COLD STORE COOLERS

> Left to right: Rob Burbridge, Dave Reynolds, Sean Macoy and Paul Kennett

be included at the heart of all the refrigeration and controlled atmosphere systems the company installs in future, working with well-known industry names including Storage Control Systems, Wealden AM and Torran Construction.

As well as fruit stores, the company provides electrical and control systems for a wide range of other growers and businesses, including high-tech tunnels with automated irrigation, humidity and door systems. It can also call on the services of a specialist programmer who can create bespoke software to ensure growers can get the best results out of top end tunnel systems.

Another area of expansion is the South East’s rapidly expanding wine industry, where Orchard Cooling’s expertise has been put to good use installing chilled storage for the likes of Hattingley Valley Wines and Itasca Winery.

“Above all, we pride ourselves on off ering a bespoke solution to the challenges facing growers and packers,” explained Service Director Sean Macoy. “We off er a full range of electrical services and we are always looking for ways to make systems more effi cient – as our heat pump defrost shows.

“Making technology work for the grower in order to improve their bottom line and make their lives easier while also doing our bit for the environment is the driving force behind the Orchard Cooling team.”

SEED FERTILISER GRAIN STORAGE

T: 01264 321 595 www.openfield.co.uk

ELVED PHILLIPS ARABLE NOTES

Well we have now had our UK ‘weather market’ for the time being! In fact, aided and abetted by the bullish expectations of the May USDA reports, we enjoyed ‘Twin Peaks’ of price, in the last week of April and the fi rst week of May. In the event the USDA report on 12 May was neutral at best and certainly bearish, if believed, to the 2021/22 season. But I expect you took my advice and sold some at the top of the market when you could?

However, we are still left with a residue of what seems to be pretty good prices for both new crop wheat and barley. With benefi cial rain received everywhere in the UK and Northern and Western Europe, farmers are happier to make forward sales.

But, the old crop still remains tight on supply and as I have been saying for six months, this will now continue until we start our new crop harvest. The cold and dry weather in March and April has pushed the harvest further back; even in the middle of May very little winter barley has emerged into ear yet. There are serious questions about whether the UK actually has the 1.5 million tonnes of wheat in stock which is needed to keep the mills producing between the end of June and the fi rst half of August. Some of that gap is usually fi lled by imported wheat, and as reported previously, French new crop cargoes have already been purchased for arrival during the second half of July. But, the French wheat is also later, so some of those French sellers are now trying to buy back the earlier boats sold, fearing that they won’t have the new crop wheat available for July shipment.

I think some manufacturers have underestimated the increased demand we are expecting to see post lockdown. Because they were caught with too

MANUFACTURERS HAVE UNDERESTIMATED THE INCREASED DEMAND

much stock and fi nished product a year ago, they have now gone too far the other way and will have to chase the market for supplies in the next few months. My comment about oilseed rape trading being for “consenting adults only” is supported by old crop making £500 per tonne ex farm recently!

Returning to the new crop. As I said, the relatively high wheat and barley values left over from the weather market requires closer inspection. Take feed wheat for example. In mid-May it was still making £180 ex farm Nov/Dec. That is a price we only reached last November when it was accepted that the UK only had 9.5 million tonnes of wheat and large imports were necessary. The AHDB says that we should have about 14.5 million tonnes of wheat this time, so I wonder what the justifi cation could possibly be for us to be at that same level of price now, four months before harvest with fi ve million more tonnes expected. There is still the possibility that we may even have an exportable surplus ourselves. I ask you to draw your own conclusions. Next, new crop feed barley. ELVED PHILLIPS Openfi eld I traded some July/August feed barley at £155/£160 ex farm in mid-May. I cannot remember feed barley for harvest collection ever being worth that sort of money when selling forward at that time of year. Two things we know for sure. Firstly, when we get into the swing of harvesting barley the UK will not be short of barley in July or August. Secondly, we don’t know if at 14.4 million tonnes of wheat we will actually have any exportable surplus. But, in the case of barley we will have an exportable surplus for sure.

We have 13 months to go before we know how all this works out. A lot can change as we may have another ‘weather market’ yet, caused by late plantings of USA maize, or maybe a late summer drought in Russia. My personal view is that the old crop market for wheat will stay very fi rm until we see new crop, so that could be up to the fi rst half of August. New crop French barley will be off by the end of June, so our old crop will stay fi rm until we start ours in July. Post-Mr Putin’s election, Russia may start dumping its wheat on the world market in September and October. By then we will know if we are going to be net importers or not. If we are, then coupled with the second ethanol plant coming on stream in the New Year, it maybe that February, March and April 2022 will be the best time to sell feed wheat. But don’t forget, I only get three out of fi ve trading decisions right and if I was that clever at forecasting, I wouldn’t be doing this job!

MICHELDEVER SHREWTON MEMBURY

01962 774420 01980 620140 01488 72217 Join the South of England’s largest crop storage cooperative.

Trinity Grain Ltd, a multi-site business offering cost effective storage processing and marketing services. Serving Hampshire, Wiltshire, Dorset, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire and W.Sussex. If you would like to be part of this successful farmer owned business, then please contact your nearest store, and the staff will be more than pleased to discuss your storage and marketing needs.