terraterra More than just machinery

13 / 2016

Forum Modern Agriculture 4 New image for the agricultural sector

Commerce vs. customer 22 An interview with Michael and Philipp Horsch

HORSCH Joker RT with knife roller 34 Working even more specifi cally in varying conditions www.horsch.com

Knife roller AN OPTION FOR THE JOKER 5-8 RT

—The new tool is perfect for working for example in cover crop and rape stubbles. —The roller extends over the whole working width. —The knifes are mounted at a slightly inclined angle to guarantee a constant force distribution. —The diameter is 280 mm and it is equipped with 6 knives per roller.

Anz_TH13_PT280_Ersatzteile_Messerwalze_EN_rh_lay.indd 3 16.12.2016 08:52:42 Editorial terra

Dear Reader Three keywords accompanied us in 2016: image of agriculture, flexitarisme, integration Image of agriculture: Our society sees agriculture in a quite different way than we do. In large part we are responsible ourselves, but I think we have to work intensely on a realistic im- age. This is the reason why HORSCH supports the Forum Modern Agriculture. Every single one of us can contribute and has to discharge his/her responsibility. There are a lot of farmers – I call them “media farmers” – who contribute to the good professional reputation of agricul- ture. We can be proud of a GMO-free agriculture that is managed in an environmentally con- scious and sustainable way. Flexitarisme: The consumer dictates agricultural production: requirements like of regional ori- gin, bio, GMO-free, no factory farming today are normal topics that are discussed every day. Within the past three years eating habits have developed at quite an extreme extent. Today there is not only bio or environmentally conscious or of regional origin, but vegan is “in”, too and 30 per cent of the consumers today are flexi- tarians. They are part time-vegetarians, part-time vegans who like to eat bio or whole-grain products. Yet I wonder: Why do vegans not question where the products come from? Does it have to be cheese made of al- monds from the US? Shouldn’t we be consequent and insist on regional products? Will there be oat cheese in the future? In this respect we farm- ers surely can set new trends and work on our image. Integration: At the beginning of the year, HORSCH deliberately decided to employ ten ad- ditional refugee-apprentices. So far, this project has been a huge success and we are very proud of our employees who supported the integration process in every respect. Encour- age and demand – this is our motto. Every single one of us was able to experience how different cultures and people can complement one another and that we both can ben- efit. We would not like to miss this experience. We are convinced that the refugee topic can be handled by integration and the idea of encourage and demand. Everyone can contribute – in the private sector, but also in working life.

I wish you a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

Cordially Cornelia Horsch

IMPRINT Contents News Service & Sales Forum Modern Agriculture 4 Farmer & entrepreneur: Poletehnika (UA) 32 terraHORSCH More than just machinery Ceres Award 2016 6 is the international customer magazine of CBB e.V.: Supplier with a social component 9 Inside HORSCH HORSCH Maschinen GmbH Creative leeway - New head of R & D: Sitzenhof 1 Practical experience Dr. Sebastian Villwock 37 DE-92421 Schwandorf Is ‘winter drilling’ the key to black-grass Active integration 38 Tel.: +49 9431 7143-0 Fax: +49 9431 41364 control? Flawborough Farms (GB) 12 Charity event: [email protected] Encourage and demand integration 40 www.horsch.com Around the world Responsible for the content: Cornelia Horsch Ukraine: Despite the war -Things are FITZ training centre Edited by: Johannes Hädicke looking up 16 AGRIDAYS 2016: A summary 41 Articles: L. D. Brandt, M. Braun, L. Charron (Fargo Brexit 18 RDN), J. Hädicke, C. Horsch, Dr. H-C. Mennenga (Forum Modern Agriculture), Dr. G. Prostinak, H. Wolf. S. Wyatt Photos: Archive Horsch, Photographie Petra Kellner, Company insights Forum Modern Agriculture, iStock, M. Dukes (AGRO- Passionate trouble shooters: MAGAZÍN), S. Wyatt Welding and pre-cut department 19 Translations: English: H. Wolf; French: S. Proust; Polish: Commerce vs. consumer B. Dudkowski; Russian: V. Veklenko (Michael and Philipp Horsch) 23 terraHORSCH is published twice a year in the following languages: German, English, French, Polish and Russian. The magazine and all its articles and illustrations are Farm report protected by copyright. Any utilisation outside the limits Exemplary: Südzucker AG (DE) 26 fixed by the copyright act is illegal without the approval of the publisher. Unrivalled: PD Zahorie (SK) 30

Layout: Otterbach Medien KG GmbH & Co terraHORSCH is wrapped in transparent foil. Using paper envelopes Print: Vogel Druck, Würzburg Machinery test instead of foil is not more environment-friendly at all. The energy ex- penditure for producing the envelopes is considerably higher. The HORSCH Joker RT with knife roller 34 foils used for terraHORSCH are furnished with additives to accelerate decomposing.

333 terra News Forum Modern Agriculture

Agriculture has changed extremely in the past decades – to such an ex- tent that a lot of people living in small towns and large cities do no longer know how food is produced. They do not know that in a modern cowshed cows can move freely. They do not know how and why farmers apply plant protection agents. And they do not know any- thing about the innovative technol- ogies that are used.

The HORSCH company is involved in the interactive ExperientialFarm.

est survey of the FORUM also proves this vide an insight into how animals are kept attitude. This, however, is also the crux: today, plants are produced, fertiliser is people know less and less about agricul- applied and other innovative technolo- ture, but they experience it in a more and gies are used. Managing director Lea more emotional way. They worry. Key- Fließ explains: “We want to show how words: glyphosate, large-scale livestock advanced, knowledge-based and at the farming, agribusiness. same time responsible modern farmers This is where the Forum Modern Agri- work.” In addition to PigMobiles, Cow- culture comes in. It was founded in its Mobiles or state-of-the-art agricultural present form in 2014. The objective of engineering they also use virtual-reality- Executive chairman Dr. Christoph Amberger the organisation is to encourage the dia- glasses. With these glasses visitors can (left) and managing director Lea Fließ (right) logue between modern agriculture and delve into five different world of modern citizens especially in cities, to provide au- agriculture. The AgrarScout campaign is thentic insights and, thus, to create con- particularly successful. The Experiential- n a current representative survey for fidence and appreciation. Farms are supported by committed far- the Forum Modern Agriculture (FO- The FORUM has developed communi- mers, agriculture students or employees RUM) 72 % of the Germans state that cative instruments it consequently takes of agricultural companies. They are the they only know very little about how a into the cities to meet citizens that are faces of modern agriculture and born- Ifarm works. Today country and city are open for a dialogue and to reduce reser- and-bred practical experts. They answer worlds apart. vations. to the visitors – even with regard to criti- “Why is that a problem?“ some people In the centre of the activities is the Ex- cal topics. The first ExperientialFarm in ask. “Most people do not know either perientialFarm, an interactive show 2017 will take place at the Green Week how the motor in their car works.“ The about modern agriculture that in 2016 (20th till 27th of January) in Berlin. The answer: The motor is inanimate. How- took place in six German cities: Berlin, topic will be “Breakfast” – a topic for ever, agriculture acts in the ecosystem. It Frankfurt on the Main, Hanover, Ham- every consumer. The HORSCH Maschinen influences animals, biodiversity, soils, burg, Dortmund und Bonn. Visitors: ap- GmbH, too, will be present. ground water. prox. 550,000. The idea: If the towns- The second important column of the Society has become more sensitive. It people do no longer come to the country, consumer dialogue is online communica- expects agriculture to treat resources in a the farms will come to them. The con- tion. In June, the website moderne-land- responsible way, to act ethically. The lat- cept: Various experiential stations pro- wirtschaft.de went live: a top-quality,

4 digital magazine based on the use of modern media of particularly younger Forum people. Each month, the website pre- In June, the website moderne-landwirtschaft.de went live – sents a large number of new, exciting and has already become extremely popular. and informative stories that bring the variety and fascination of Modern Ag- Modern Agriculture riculture and its personalities to life and make them tangible. The edito- rial team consciously takes off the “blinkers” and explains the agri- cultural world from the interested Among others, committed citizens’ point of view. The mes- students of agriculture take sage: Each product has an exci- part in the AgrarScout cam- ting history and is the result of paign and are available for questions and discussions. endless experience, entrepre- neurial spirit and research. All topics are distributed via the With virtual-reality glasses visitors social networks and discussed can delve into five different world of on these platforms. The „Chief modern agriculture. editor“ is the online-communi- cation of the FORUM. The team is supported by professional authors and journalists as well as photographers and videogra- phers. The success of the first months is considerable: More than 85,000 people have already visited the website, the total coverage of the Facebook activities amounts to more than three million. To concentrate the communicative ac- tivities in a systematic, coverage-efficient and emotional way under one roof and to develop them, this summer the FO- RUM created a brand: „Our knowledge. Modern Agriculture“.

PigMobiles and CowMobiles are part of the ExperientialFarm.

The FORUM is based in Berlin-Trep- The central message: Our modern society tow. The team consists of eleven em- needs Modern Agriculture – for the latter ployees. The executive chairman is develops sophisticated solutions for its Dr. Christoph Amberger (59), former nutrition issues and takes its requirements ExperientialFarm 2016 in Bonn member of the management board into account. The farmers themselves are of KWS Saat SE, Lea Fließ (34), former at the core of the brand. With their know- BILD-editor, is the managing director. ledge, skills and their willingness for pro- For one thing is clear: Strong commu- The president of the farmers’ associa- gress they constantly optimise the system. nication does not only need a clear send- tion Joachim Rukwied is the chair- They are not only experts, but also con- er, clear topics, clear messages and a high man. Besides the HORSCH Maschinen fidants and trendsetters. frequency of communication – is also GmbH the FORUM consists of 46 fur- The brand is also an invitation to the needs enough funds. Compared to other ther members: associations, organisa- whole sector. The identification factor is sectors, agriculture invests too little in tions and agricultural companies as very high and allows the many heteroge- the area. If the willingness to become well as companies from the preced- neous protagonists to join forces and to more active grows, this would be a ing and subsequent sectors. Statute conduct a dialogue with the people un- strong statement and an important con- and structure are publicly available der this communicative roof. More and tribution to guaranteeing its future. Only under forum-moderne-landwirt- more organisations and companies fol- those who talk, can be heard – and un- schaft.de. low this call. derstood.

5 terra News

Cornelia Horsch (2. from the left) presents Christoph Straeten (2.from the right) with the award for the category „Farming“.

Ceres Award 2016

There are quite a lot of prizes, awards, medals and trophies in Germany! Three years ago, finally an award was created for the most important sector of the world. An award for those who guarantee our food: the Ceres Award – Farmer of the Year. In October, the prize was awarded to the Farmers of the Year for the third time in the presence of the Federal Minis- ter of Agriculture Christian Schmidt.

eing the category sponsor for the The salad specialist in farming – vegetables that can be eaten directly “Arable Farmer of the Year” Those who visit Christoph Straeten, without too much preparation. For salad HORSCH is a strong and continu- the winner in the category “Farming”, on mixes, too (Straeten grows salad on more ous partner of the Ceres Award. In his farm in Straelen instantly notice the than 100 hectare), he responded to the BGermany, there is a need for a platform scent of fresh herbs. And the number of where farmers can prove themselves and visitors grows constantly. For the business show themselves in a positive light. The partners of farm owner Christoph Strae- Award has become established – this is ten more and more often take their cus- proven by the high quality of the applica- tomers to the farm to take a look around tions. Due to the Ceres Award the top and to learn how the food they sell or performances of the farmers get the at- consume is cultivated. 32-year old tention they deserve. The HORSCH slo- Christoph Straeten then patiently ex- gan “Farming with Passion” is also the plains how he grows and harvests salad, motto of the farmers. Innovation and top spices and vegetables. He sometimes quality in the machine and technology even needs his knowledge of the English solution sector interact with the individ- or Dutch language as by now has farm ual requirements of every single farmer. crops have also found their way into the Thus, every farm produces high-quality shelves of foreign food store chains. food with maximum commitment. We That the good reputation of his pro- are looking forward to a lot of further ducts has already passed the country’s candidates and are curious which innova- frontiers is not only due to the distinct tive solutions the best of them will show professional skills of Christoph Straeten us on their farm. It is the same as in and his family, but also to the fact that sports: One of them will be the winner the farmers attaches particular im- and all the others will try hard to become portance to what the consumers want. even better. And everyone will profit. We Thus, he directly (supermarket chains) or would be very happy if a lot of our read- indirectly (via his buyers) sets trends and The Ceres Award is the well-deserved reward ers would decide to apply for the Ceres implements them. He grows baby-spin- for all the work and energy Christoph Straeten Award under www.ceresaward.de. ach, mini-chard or baby-green cabbage put into the farm over the past years.

6 trend to add Asian salad like pak choi to to attach greater importance to healthy Their motto is: “When one of us does not salad rocket. Thus, he gives a special heal- and quickly prepared food. There is an want to do something, the other one thy touch to what often with a slightly increasing number of marketing cam- won’t do it either.” But what they have critical undertone is called convenience paigns for ready-to-eat salads or fresh done after having taken over the farm food. herbs. Even the current vegan and veg- from their father in the early 2000s is Adding to that are the requirements etarian trend is rather an advantage than quite impressive. of the buyers that go way beyond the a disadvantage for us. Despite the trend for specialisation the actual product, i.e. environmental terraHORSCH: For me, HORSCH is… brothers constantly developed the farm, aspects. To be able to guarantee that the C. Straeten: …a down-to-earth and invested and put it on a wide basis. The consumers get unpolluted food, he du- innovative company. Over the years, the core areas today are pig keeping with ring the growing season sends weekly Horsch family managed to build a suc- 650 pigs and 6,000 fattening places in a samples of his products to a laboratory cessful agricultural engineering company closed system, farming on about 1,000 where they are examined for residues. – with hard work, courage and surely a hectare as well as renewable energies In terms of sustainability he attaches little bit of luck. The competition with the with two biogas plants and photovol- great importance to the topic ecology. It long-established competitors that have taics. Last but not least they manage 190 is the same for another sustainability cri- been working the market for a very much hectare of forest area, among others for terion: social responsibility. The about 30 longer time is hard. But HORSCH cannot the production of firewood, and 1,600 to 40 seasonal workers from Poland and only keep up with them, but is one of the hectare of hunting ground. The results in Romania partly have been working on top players. It is amazing what the family all branches are above average. the farm for decades during the harvest together with their team has achieved Both farmers consider their farm to be season. He wants to provide them with a and still achieves. They really have earned an intensive livestock farm and practice familiar atmosphere during their emplo- my respect. an almost perfect economic cycle: The yment. For he is convinced that is was terraHORSCH: Your final comment on pigs eat the cultivated cereals to produce only possible for the farm to further de- the Ceres Award 2016? meat. The liquid manure together with velop constantly over the years due to a C. Straeten: I accepted the award as a silage maize is fermented in the biogas committed team. representative of my family and employ- plant. The result is “green” energy that is ees. I am proud of being a farmer and this fed into the power grid. The waste heat terraHORSCH interviewed Christoph profession is my passion! is used to heat all buildings and stables of Straeten. the farm and thus replaces fossil energy terraHORSCH: What does winning the Double power – the winner in the ca- sources. The digestate is spread on the Ceres Award mean to you? tegory Manager fields as a high-quality fertiliser. Thus, the C. Straeten: Winning the Ceres Award The HORSCH customers Michael and cycle is closed. And with 14 employees in the category farming means a lot to Andreas Kühling are not only brothers. the Kühlings figure among the larger re- me. In the past years we tried out a lot of The 40-year-old graduate-farmer and the gional employers. The fathers of respec- new crops and added them to our cultiva- 39-year-old master craftsman in agricul- tively two daughters also gained very tion range. I constantly had to train ture are the managing directors of a positive experiences in schools. Together intensively, develop further and learn a successful farm in Zemmin (district of with neighbouring farms and the far- lot about the new crops. I did a lot of Western Pomerania-Greifswald) that mers’ association they for example orga- pioneer work and tests, bought and they run together with their wives at eye nise an “Agriculture Day” for the local modified new machines or partly even level. All decisions are taken together. schools. developed them myself, especially for harvest, maintenance or fertilisation. And when you try something new, it does not always work out at first go and we had to learn the hard way. This is why I am so happy that we got the Ceres Award as a reward for all the work and energy I put into the farm over the past years. terraHORSCH: We are looking towards the future in a positive/neutral/negative way because… C. Straeten: Our emotions when look- ing towards the future are mixed. On the one hand I think that, in general, we in Europe will have to face difficult times with a lot of problems like refugees, the Brexit or a drifting apart of society. On the other hand – from a farmer’s point of view – my feelings are positive. The mar- For Michael and Andreas Kühling, the award in the category „Manager“ is the most important ket shows that the consumer again starts event the family-run farm has achieved so far.

7 terra News

A stylish ambience for an important award – the Ceres Award ceremony in Berlin

terraHORSCH talked to Michael and terraHORSCH: How do you feel when terraHORSCH: What does HORSCH in Andreas Kühling look towards the future? your opinion stand for? terraHORSCH: What does winning the M. und A. Kühling: Positive, as every- M. und A. Kühling: An innovative com- Ceres Award mean to you? one is the architect of his/her own for- pany that for years has been a trendset- M. und A. Kühling: We consciously tune. And this is particularly true for us ter in the tillage sector. But above all, the applied for this award and, of course, we farmers. We have placed our farm on a machines have been meeting the require- wanted to win. After having won in the wide basis that guarantees economic sta- ments of our no-till crop farming system. category “Manager”, we are still over- bility in a political situation that current- We rely on the high quality of the respec- whelmed by the good feedback and the ly is marked by extremely ideological tive work result and of the workmanship numerous congratulations we got. It has opinions. We farmers serve markets – of the machines. been a privilege for us that we were regionally and all over the world! And we terraHORSCH: Among other machines allowed to participate. For us, this award can and want to produce high-quality you also own a HORSCH Tiger. The term is the most important event we so far goods for these markets in an innovative „to tiger“ seems to have found its way have achieved with our family-run farm. way. into the agricultural language. M. und A. Kühling (smiling): Previ- ously, we talked about cultivating. Today, however, among experts “to tiger” is the term for heavy tillage without a plough. We ourselves and our colleagues, too, we catch us out saying that we are going to tiger, instead of we are going to culti- vate. terraHORSCH: Your final comment on the Ceres Award 2016? M. und A. Kühling: Our thanks to HORSCH that the company has recog- nised the significance of the Ceres Award early on and right from the start acted as sponsor. The Award reflects the diversity of today’s agriculture and emphasises the high social importance of the farmers and of our achievements. We made the acquaintance of a lot of people who each on their own would have deserved this award – for this reason alone our partici- Michael and Andreas Kühling put their farm on a wide basis. pation was worth every effort.

8 Bearing responsibility

When selecting a supplier, there are first and foremost the economic aspects that are taken into account. The requirements with regard to quality, but mainly with regard to the price have to be met. But there are other aspects, too. HORSCH deliberately co-operates with the association CBB. It is aimed at reintegrating socially disadvantaged people in a working environment.

t the beginning there was a we simply had to help.“ in the working life as well as assistance to home group“, Viktor Epp, In 2003, CBB was founded by Dr. Jo- develop professional and personal skills. managing director of CBB e.V. hannes Reimer, Martin Schulte and Viktor Funding first and foremost is gene- (Christlichen Beschäftigungsge- Epp as a registered association. rated from orders and only to a minor Asellschaft im Bergischen = Christian em- extent from donations. ployment association in the Bergisches Various sectors With regard to practical work there Land) in Waldbröl states. „This home The objective of that time is still the are various single-purpose sectors. „Peo- group grew constantly and after three same: offer holistic help to people in dif- ple are allowed to work according to years there were already about 100 peo- ficult living conditions. The focus is on the their abilities and interests”, Epp says. ple who met. We were faced with the reintegration in the job market and the Sectors like gardening and landscaping, social hardships of our region: almost 70 integration in the social environment. the metal workshop and repairing euro- per cent of the participants came from CBB offers support and assistance with pallets are already well-established. A the street. They had problems with ill- regard to the choice of employment, help tyre workshop, the sewing workshop and nesses, alcohol, drugs or delinquency. We and support with regard to coping with the assembly service for kitchens are still did not choose it, but when we saw this, every-day life to allow for a reintegration in the set-up period.” For HORSCH, CBB

Viktor Epp, managing director of CBB e.V.

9 terra News

Technically only a few rods (left), but indis- pensable for the transport of a Tiger 4 AS rigid version (right) – the transport rack is supplied by CBB.

works in the metal construction sector. ics like regularity, punctuality and com- However, there are still a lot of chal- They produce welding components and pleteness. In the second stage, the focus lenges to face for CBB. A lot of late re- container loading racks and assemble for is on individual responsibility, the stam- patriates from Russia, Kazakhstan and example harrow units. ina for an eight-hour day, the basic or- Uzbekistan live in the region of Wald- ganisation of one’s own work and – very bröl. A lot of them still have problems Personal contact important – on the creation of stable with integration. “But each time we see HORSCH became a customer as a re- private living conditions. In the end, con- how former delinquents have turned sult of a personal contact with the Horsch crete steps are worked out with the par- into people who think differently, who family. Viktor Epp asked for an appoint- ticipants to integrate them in their first have got back their human face, their ment with Philipp Horsch. When Mr job market. The abilities and skills are to identity – we are satisfied with our Horsch asked him what CBB produces, be maintained and extended. CBB sup- work“, Viktor Epp says. At the moment, Epp answered: “You tell us what you ports them by conveying industry-wide, CBB’s managing director is taking a sab- want – and this is what we will produce.“ professional qualification and counsel- batical leave abroad. There, too, he will The first order in 2009 were soldering ling with regard to career perspectives. serve the people, however, quite practi- works – at that time completely un- They provide assistance concerning find- cally and not in an executive function. charted waters for CBB. But Viktor Epp ing a job, making contact with companies The work at CBB continues: New ma- had someone show him what to do and and preparing application documents chines for the sewing workshop have taught it to the employees. Since that and job interviews. When the partici- already been ordered. time CBB has been working for HORSCH. pants start a job, CBB still is available for In addition, the HORSCH foundation sup- questions with regard to work contract, ports the association with an annual do- social insurance as well as labour stan- nation. dards.

Holistic help Perspective CBB’s most important objective is to “CBB faced difficult times“, Viktor Epp provide the people with a possibility to remembers. “On the one hand this is true enter the job market again. This happens for the economic part, but our employ- in three stages: At the beginning the ees, too, reached their limits. It was no CBB assem- work is practised, then individual respon- longer possible to work like this on the bles the inter- sibility is encouraged and the final step is side and on a voluntary basis. Changing mediate parts the integration in the first job market. At to a system of salaried work respectively of the fertiliser rotors. first, the challenges are for example top- employment facilitated a lot.“

10 Well-proven relationship

Dr. Johann Neidl is HORSCH’s head of procurement and supplier management. terraHORSCH talked to him about the business relationship with CBB e.V.

alf of the profit lies in purchas- ing“. This statement is surely al- so true for HORSCH. Although beside the price there are other Himportant decision criteria. In the case of CBB this is, among others, the social com- ponent.

terraHORSCH: Dr. Neidl, what is the difference between CBB and other sup- pliers? Dr. Johann Neidl: An almost insignifi- cant one. As a matter of principle we place our orders after consultation with the other departments. Among others the criteria are innovation, quality, deliv- ery reliability and competitiveness. With regard to CBB, there are also social Dr. Johann Neidl, head of procurement and supplier management aspects. terraHORSCH: What are they like? Dr. Johann Neidl: As a company we started with a turnover of 100,000 Euro, terraHORSCH: Have you already vis- also have a social responsibility we take this year it will have tripled. However – ited the production at CBB? very seriously. This is why we promised and this is true for all our suppliers – we Dr. Johann Neidl: Unfortunately, I have CBB to place orders for a certain turnover do not want to place too much delivery to admit that I have never been to Wald- level with them to make sure that they volume with one single supplier. For it bröl. But actually this is a good sign: When can fulfil their social objectives. By the might eventually happen that our busi- everything is ok, there is no reason for way, this is how we work together with ness declines. And in this case it would be visiting a supplier. the Naab-Werkstätten in Schwandorf, bad for a supplier if it depends too much too, a non-profit institution of the on HORSCH. Lebenshilfe association for handicapped people. terraHORSCH: How do you decide what CBB produces for you? Dr. Johann Neidl: We tried to find the appropriate product range together. In CBB’s case, they produce simple welding components, transport rack, supports and pre-assemblies. terraHORSCH: Do you support CBB additionally? Dr. Johann Neidl: Within the frame- work of our normal supplier develop- ment. But this is nothing special either. terraHORSCH: Do you discuss prices with CBB? Dr. Johann Neidl: Of course we do! terraHORSCH: In what way has the supplier-customer relationship devel- oped over the years? The harrow unit of the Pronto Dr. Johann Neidl: Very positively. The is assembled by CBB. turnover increased continuously. We

11 terra Practical experience

The Vale of Belvoir has some of the heaviest clay soils in the UK

In 2013, a severe black-grass problem led the Hawthorne family to review the way they farmed their land at Flawborough Farms. A move to late autumn drilling, a change in crop rotation and farm diversification with the development of an anaerobic digestion (AD) plant is helping to get this persistent weed under control. Is ‘winter drilling’ the key to black-grass control?

estled in the Vale of Belvoir in Winter drilling Nottinghamshire, UK, Flawbo- Run as a partnership between Tom, his rough Farms boasts some of the father, mother and sister, Flawborough heaviest clay soils in the country. Farms has 400 hectares of arable land NTom Hawthorne, a partner at the busi- with a further 1600 hectares managed ness, describes the conditions as ideal for under contract farming arrangements black-grass growth. along a 10-mile line, with Hall Farm sit- “Black-grass is effectively a swamp ting at the centre. grass making our heavy clay soils, which After a poor harvest in 2013, the team are high in magnesium and therefore at Flawborough Farms proposed a new tend to be wet, a fertile ground for it,” strategy to the farms under their ste- he explains. wardship, delaying wheat drilling until late October. “We didn’t want to simply Black-grass takes hold manage the problem but actively knock Black-grass is an issue that has existed back the black-grass to minimal levels in on the farm for a long time but until re- a sustainable way,” adds Tom. cently it was a problem that had been “We knew that delaying would give us held in check. “My father, John, started a battle with slugs but with the majority testing for black-grass resistance on the of black-grass coming through in late Au- farm as far back as 1992 and was one of gust to early October, we knew we could the first to recognise the chemical re- deal with it more effectively before the sistance that was developing. New chem- Tom Hawthorne manages Flawborough Farms wheat emerged.” istry would provide five good years of along with his parents and sister. Tom admits working the fields in Oc- control before resistance started increas- tober, although straightforward, did not ing again and new chemicals would need leave an attractive finish but the results to be used to handle the problem.” only 300 hectares was able to be har- were impressive. “Our 12m Sprinter drill Tom marks 2012 as the year the black- vested with 600 hectares lost to slugs. worked very well even in difficult condi- grass really took hold. The Met Office “The conditions were appalling, which tions with very little clogging. Once fin- shows that 2012 was the second wettest really let the black-grass in. With no new ished, the fields looked terrible in compa- year in the UK since records began and of chemistry coming through, we needed to rison to local farms that had drilled ear- the 900 hectares of oilseed rape that was look at alternative techniques,” com- lier, but by spring 2014 there was little planted by Tom and his team that year, ments Tom. difference and the wheat went on to

12 Late drilling of wheat with the 12m Sprinter

produce a great yield.” Flawborough Farms operate a 12m lots of options to remove weight when Coining the term ‘winter drilling’, the controlled traffic farming (CTF) system it’s not needed and helps reduce compac- same approach was taken the following with RTK-based guidance system, which tion further as our shallow cultivation season. Drilling in late October 2014, pre- gives them confidence when drilling late system does not need deep traction,” emergence herbicide is also applied at and keeps compaction to a minimum. Tom says. this time when the ground is wet and The wheelings are set by the sprayers, take up is greater. This has proved more with the farm running both a Leeb GS Moving to a winter rotation effective against the black-grass with the 8000 trailed sprayer and a Leeb PT270 In addition to a later drilling, Tom has 2015 harvest producing another good self-propelled. changed his crop rotation in order to yield. Th farm has incrementally moved to help control black-grass and allow the “We have seen a dramatic reduction 12m widths with a Joker cultivator and a farm to diversify into generating clean, in black-grass and, with lower competi- 12.3m combine header. The farm opted renewable and reliable energy from a tion, improved wheat yields. It was for a 6m Maestro drill for planting maize new anaerobic digestion (AD) plant. widely believed that leaving that drilling but it still operates well within the 12m In 2012, the farm was 50% winter this late would severely impact yields but system. wheat and 50% oilseed rape. The farm we have seen that, with the right equip- “In fact, we’re now moving away from now follows a winter crop rotation of ment, it can be done effectively,” said our Case IH Quadtrac to a 500hp Claas hybrid rye, oilseed rape, winter wheat, Tom. Xerion 5000 on 900 tyres. This gives us maize followed again by winter wheat.

Tom says the 12m Sprinter drill worked very well even in difficult conditions

13 terra Practical experience

CTF gives Flawborough Farms confidence when drilling late and keeps compaction to a minimum

In addition, there is some spring and win- spring drilled crop, which is great for let- the AD plant back on the farm to ensure ter barley. ting black-grass emerge but maize cre- we’re not giving away our valuable NPK. The new rotation suits the farms late ates a moist micro climate that helps the The anaerobic process in the AD plant drilling approach and includes crops that black-grass chit,” explains Tom. Using a takes six to eight weeks, which ensures enable the black-grass to be more easily 6m HORSCH Maestro, Tom admits that the black-grass seeds are killed off.” controlled, as well as providing an ideal the maize can be tricky to establish if it is crop balance for the AD plant. The new wet in late spring but they have still seen Developing an AD plant has many system appealed to Tom on a number of good yields, even on the heavy clay soils. benefits levels. “Not only do we have more con- The hybrid rye is grown as a compan- The UK government’s commitment to trol but we can also diversify and develop ion to the maize with the latest research renewable energy, as part of a 15% tar- a different revenue stream.” showing that a 40:60 mix of rye and get reduction in total energy consump- As well as being ideal crops for an AD maize is much more effective in the AD tion by 2020, has seen strong growth in plant, both maize and hybrid rye are plant. “Hybrid rye is great as it’s far more the development of AD plants across. The great for helping to control black-grass. competitive than wheat and limits black- government’s feed-in tariff is designed to Now on their third year of maize, Flaw- grass growth. We harvest it whole crop, increase the investment in renewable en- borough Farms plants early varieties of which means that black-grass seeds will ergy technologies by offering stable, maize in May. “Not only is this late for a be taken too. We put the digestate from long-term contracts to renewable energy

Flawborough Farms manages 2000ha of arable land in a 10-mile line with Hall Farm is located at the centre

14 sing of the biogas reduces impurities to less than 5% so it resembles the qualities of natural gas and can be put directly into the national gas grid. Biomethane has a higher energy density than biogas, en- sures energy that is captured in the bio- gas can be used more efficiently and commands a higher premium. With work ready to begin, Flawbo- rough Farms is waiting for news on the governments feed-in tariffs which will determine the long-term viability of the AD plant. “Brexit and the development of Hinkley Point C nuclear power station* has caused some repercussions in the funding of renewable energy and we are waiting to see the outcome,” says Tom.

Working together The farm opted for a 6m Maestro drill for planting maize but it still operates well within the 12m Tom credits his father as pioneer, a far- CTF system mer that is prepared to challenge ac- cepted farming practices. It is clearly a spirit that continues at Flawborough producers. ers, allowing the AD plants to be easily Flawborough Farms has worked with fed. a biogas production partner for several With planning permission already years, feeding a local 2 megawatt AD granted to build the new plant, Tom is plant with maize and whole crop rye. It also very keen on a new technology that was therefore a natural step for Tom to would also allow Flawborough Farms to develop a new AD plant at Flawborough use straw with the AD plant and Tom in conjunction with the same partner. hopes to source more than 8,000 tonnes “Building the AD plant offers us many each year. benefits. It provides a different and con- “The Economiser is an additional pro- sistent revenue stream, it is far more at- cessing plant that sits ahead of the AD tractive to land owners and local resi- plant and uses the residual steam from dents than building wind turbines or the plant to break down the lignin in the Hybrid rye is far more competitive than wheat fields of solar panels, it reduces our de- straw by hydrolysis. The broken down and limits black-grass growth pendency on new chemicals and it works straw substrate can be then fed to the AD beautifully with our black-grass manage- plant and provides huge energy source ment,” says Tom. with one tonne of straw substrate worth Farms with some bold changes in the way The farm already uses commercial ve- 2.5 tonnes of maize.” cultivation and drilling was done. hicles to transport crop from the fields, Tom is using an enhanced AD plant “With tight margins on wheat, just a which Tom highlights as being far easier design that allows the biogas to be up- small fluctuation in price can mean very and more efficient than tractors and trail- graded to biomethane. Further proces- little return on a lot of work, particularly when you consider that profits are split under contract. “We’ve invested in quality equipment and we have good people. Rather than chase a £10 margin, we wanted to intro- duce a system that would allow us to farm productively, control black-grass in a sustainable manner and build a solid future for the farm,” concludes Tom.

*Hinkley Point C is a project to construct a 3,200 MW nuclear power station with two EPR reactors in Somerset, England. Owned by EDF Energy, it will be the first UK nuclear power station to be built in more than 20 years. Maize creates a moist micro climate that helps the black-grass chit

15 terra Around the world Despite the war: Things are looking up

Johannes Kluth is the HORSCH person responsible for the Ukrainian market. Despite crisis and war that’s where he spends half of his working time. He usually commutes in a two-week rhythm. terraHORSCH talked to him about his experiences.

terraHORSCH: Mr Kluth, what is the responding working widths. It ranges situation in the Ukraine like? from the Belarus class (80 to 120 hp) Johannes Kluth: The country is big. In which is declining over the main class most regions you notice only little of the with 300 to 350 hp to the top class with war itself. And in a lot of other aspects, about 500 hp. For us as a manufacturer it too, everyday life is quite normal unless is quite easy as we can pre-produce you are directly affected by friends or standard working widths. For example relatives who were drafted into the army. the Joker with eight metres or the Tiger One gets used to everything. However, with four metres for 350 hp, seed drills in the infrastructure in the whole country is eight or twelve meters – that’s it! The very bad. Because of the war there is same is true for the equipment. It is high- quite a strain on the national budget. end that is in demand. There is no money for roads, schools and terraHORSCH: Has it always been like so on. this? terraHORSCH: Does this also affect the Johannes Kluth: Take the Maestro as agricultural sector? an example. We are the market leader in Johannes Kluth is the HORSCH person responsible for the Ukrainian market. Johannes Kluth: Sure. Logistics are lim- this sector. Previously, we had a problem ited. Because of the potholes you quite as the Maestro was not equipped with often hear the signal of the Parktronic, bout markers. The farms had to invest in even in an all-terrain vehicle. And you GPS-technology, the tractor drivers com- better not drive at night. plained about electronics. But after one terraHORSCH: What is the market situ- year they all are happy to have taken this ation for agriculture like in general? step forward. Now a lot of farms are Johannes Kluth: Most of the Rape is thinking about Section Control what is exported. There are only few problems. already standard for HORSCH. The same is true for sunflowers that – terraHORSCH: And the mechanical among others in the form of oil – are aspect? exported, too. However, a lot of wheat is Johannes Kluth: There are different stored. That’s difficult. Perhaps maize, requirements for MinTill or for NoTill. too, will get under pressure, but we still Depending on the cultivation system do not know for sure. Harvest, in total, another coulter is necessary for the ferti- was good. liser insert or for NoTill trash wheels are terraHORSCH: Do the farmers invest in mounted to handle higher quantities of farming equipment? harvest residues. The best thing about it Johannes Kluth: In 2014, there was a is: The farms’ fields are so large that these low. During the past two years the whole extras pay for themselves in the first or market has grown. In fact in all sectors. second year. That’s comprehensible and terraHORSCH: Are there differences satisfied farm managers are the best kind with regard to types of machines and of advertising for HORSCH. In the Ukraine working widths? all farms use electronics, the larger the Johannes Kluth: Despite different farm the more. For this is the only way to farm sizes as well as climate and soil con- control farming on this scale. Data collec- ditions everything is quite homogenous. tion without the human factor is an The HORSCH PT 330 was awarded a silver med- For tractors, there are actually three dif- essential element for sustainable success. al at the InterAgro Show in Kiev in November. ferent engine-power classes with the cor- Some of our customers demand that

16 terraHORSCH: How about the plant protection sector? Johannes Kluth: In this sector our French competitors are quite successful. The market is more difficult as the basic requirements are different. Plant protec- tion agents are very cheap and less treat- ments are carried out. Thus, it is a little With the Maestro HORSCH is the market leader in the respective sector. bit more difficult with a premium prod- uct. However, we can score where effi- ciency is concerned and we get a larger error messages of our machines are exception. We really enjoy working with part of the active agent on the target directly transferred (e.g. via Trimble Con- these customers. They think and act for area – thanks to BoomControl with a very nected Farm) to the mobile phone of the the long term. But, of course, the hold- high operational speed. And again it is all agronomist. And all that in real time so ings are important, too. The farms often about service. Reliability is essential. In that they can go into the matter and take are subdivided in profit centres and work the plant protection sector time is crucial. the necessary steps. Or the comparability with a central purchasing department. In The performance has to be optimal exact- of several machines in the machine the Ukraine, the farms play a decisive ly when it is needed. But quite recently a pool… The farms often have their own IT social role. There is a government, but it lot is changing. The previous well-proven department, their own cloud and so on… only gets involved in the regions to a lim- combination was a Belarus tractor for terraHORSCH: Is this a gadget or eco- ited extent. It’s the farms that act. about 25,000 Euro and an imported nomically reasonable? terraHORSCH: What is the situation sprayer for 50,000 Euro. This is the price Johannes Kluth: An average farmer like in the large farms? basis where our sprayers start. But with a carries out about 40 harvests in his life. Johannes Kluth: They are, of course, Belarus you cannot work with 15 km/h This is his experience portfolio. The big our flagships and sometimes buy ten to the whole day. Now they are using more agricultural holdings can make certain 15 machines a year. Previously, the fluc- 150 to 200 hp tractors and with the experiences on different sites more often. tuation among employees was consider- HORSCH Leeb LT we will succeed in enter- Thus, they are able to discover tendencies able. But especially in executive position ing the market. The higher speed and 36 in a more reliable way than on an indi- this fortunately has changed. Since the instead of 24 metre working width are vidual farm. crisis the super large farms have some- excellent arguments. This year, we also terraHORSCH: What about the farms times been facing financing problems. actively presented our self-propelled sizes in the Ukraine? The smaller ones, however, buy from sprayer PT 330 in the Ukraine. Our dealer Johannes Kluth: There are farms with cashflow. This is possible as farming was Poletehnika used it to spray more than up to 600,000 hectare. Our typical cus- quite profitable in the past years. More- 10,000 hectare. tomer farms between 1,500 and 5,000 over, it is not allowed to sell arable land. terraHORSCH: Do you notice any farm- hectare. These farms are still managed by In many other countries most of the ing trends in the Ukraine? individuals. Smaller holdings farm liquidity goes into the purchase of land. Johannes Kluth: HORSCH itself set the between 10,000 and 50,000 hectare and Furthermore, the extreme inflation is not trend to apply fertiliser during tillage. the large holdings up to 600,000 hectare. necessarily a disadvantage for the agri- This has proven its worth especially with terraHORSCH: What is your main clien- cultural sector. The money is not kept in phosphor and potash as well as for non- tele? the account, but is invested – namely in turning tillage. For when phosphor is on Johannes Kluth: I am very proud that high-quality products with intrinsic value. top and there is little rain, it is not avail- this year we sold approx. 80 per cent of And we were able to benefit from that. able to the plant. This is what we do with our machines to first customers. There We did not double our turnover for noth- the rigid version of the Tiger 4 MT. We are even customers that farm between ing... developed a special fertiliser mounting as 600 and 1000 hectare, though this is an terraHORSCH: In your opinion, are an entry level model for this technology there other reasons why HORSCH is so – quite specifically for this market. successful in the Ukraine? Johannes Kluth: We have a very com- mitted team on site, use our well-proven marketing tools and also continued to do so during the crisis. And our customers appreciated it. In my opinion, the crucial factor is our excellent service that is wide- ly known all over the Ukraine. Only one example: On one machine there was a problem with a rusty connector. When this became evident after three years, we A fertiliser mounting kit for the Tiger 4 MT rigid was specifically designed for the changed this connector on all machines. The framework conditions for the market Ukrainian market. And such news got around. entry of the HORSCH Leeb LT are excellent.

17 terra Around the world Brexit

On June 23 2016, the United Kingdom voted in a national referendum to end its European Union membership, a process that has widely become known as Brexit.

hile many in the UK’s gen- chancellor, Philip Hammond, issued a of the EU, but obviously we will start to eral population felt there statement3 to guarantee EU funding be- negotiate them before we leave. There is was a lack solid facts on yond date UK leaves the EU. “The go- no sudden change afoot,” she said. which to make a clear deci- vernment will also match the current le- “We want great British food to be one Wsion, pre-vote polls such as the Econo- vel of agricultural funding until 2020, of our key exports – we want it to con- mist1 magazine had the Remain and providing certainty to our agricultural tinue growing. Our standards in animal Leave supporters level with 9% unde- community, which play a vital role in our welfare, food safety and traceability are cided. This is in contrast to a pre-vote poll country.” second to none and we want to continue run by Farmers Weekly2 publication one The news met with positive reactions with that,” she added. week ahead of the referendum at the from farming organisations. The Natio- It is clear that there is a still a huge Cereals 2016, a leading UK agricultural nal Farmers‘ Union (NFU) president Meu- amount of uncertainty both within the event aimed at arable farmers and agron- rig Raymond said: „I hope that this short- farming sector and as a whole as the UK omists. It reported that ‘over the two-day term certainty will help to deliver longer- moves forward, with access to the EU sin- event a total of 2,025 people cast their term confidence and this is exactly what gle market being key topic for debate. vote with 56% voting leave, 32% backing farm businesses need now.“ remain and 12% still unsure of how to Edwin Taylor, an arable and livestock vote.’ famer in Northumberland, believes that Clearly farming operations vary great- Brexit will be good for the UK in the long ly in the UK, from fruit farms in southern term. “If you’ve got a product that peo- England and hill-top sheep farms in ple want then you’ll be able to sell it and Wales to large arable farms in eastern I think that UK farms will still be able to England and the Brexit vote will affect compete effectively in a global market. farming operations in very different We sell a lot of lamb to France and I don’t ways. The UK government is still waiting see that demand being fulfilled by any- to trigger Article 50, the formal start of one else but clearly we need to get trade the proposed two-year exit process, with agreements in place. many politicians and political commenta- I’d like to see any future subsidies link- tors trying to predict the implications of ed to environmental issues, such as soil the separation. However, on 3rd Novem- quality and erosion. I think will be essen- ber 2016 the High Court decided not to tial to create a sustainable farming indus- trigger Article 50 as the support with try.” 1.9% was too low. In December the Su- At the Conservative Party Conference preme Court will deal with the appeal of in October 2016, Farmers Weekly the government against this decision. reported4 that Defra secretary, Even after this decision primeminister Andrea Leadsom stated that Theresa May holds on to her schedule for farming would “front and the kick-off of the exit to take place at centre” of international the end of March 2017 at the latest. trade negotiations. “We Subsidies paid to UK farmers under can’t [conclude] free trade the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy are agreements until we are out a key area of discussion. In 2013, farmers received €2.6bn under pillar 1 and €637m for agri-environment and rural develop- Reference: 1. http://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2016/06/britain-s-eu-referendum ment under ‚green‘ pillar 2, payments 2. http://www.fwi.co.uk/news/arable-farmers-back-brexit-in-cereals-eu-poll-final-count.htm that Remain supporters claim are essen- 3. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/chancellor-philip-hammond-guarantees-eu-funding-beyond-date-uk-leaves-the-eu 4. http://www.fwi.co.uk/news/leadsom-warned-over-brexit-consequences-for-farming.htm tial to UK farmers. On 13 August, UK

18 Company insights terra

Special orders again and again require discussions on site: Thomas Gradl, team- leader pre-cut department, Jürgen Blaschke, teamleader welding department, Anton Grauvogl, head of the two departments, and his deputy Martin Bauer (from right to left)

Passionate trouble shooters

Metal surely is not one of the most flexible materials that are handled by HORSCH. But all the more it is a characteristic of the employees that work in the welding and pre-cut department at the Schwandorf site. For they take care of all the things that could not be produced elsewhere.

end a torn frame, cut some- thing off in this area, add something at another area – these are some of the prob- Mlems the employees of the welding and pre-cut department often face when ma- chine prototypes are used in the field for the first time. For it may happen that modifications have to be carried out even at this stage. But these are only some of the tasks the 14 employees of the weld- ing and pre-cut department have to deal with at the Schwandorf site of the HORSCH company. They are responsible for everything with regard to metalwork- ing that does not fit into the SAP-con- trolled processes of a modern production company. “The range is from small batch series over prototype manufacturing to special orders from the boss“, Anton Grauvogl, head of the two departments, explains. Martin Bauer is the deputy head, the team leader for the welding department is Jürgen Blaschke and for Flying sparks: The time targets sometimes are very short – this requires a high amount of flexibility.

19 terra Company insights

the pre-cut department it is Thomas Gradl.

Special workplace If you have to carry out so many vary- ing tasks, the workplace has to be well equipped. This is the reason why there are six stationary welding points, band saws, a punching machine, a press, con- ventional and CNC milling machines and lathes. A new machining centre has al- ready been ordered and will be opera- tional soon. Working here is completely different from working in an assembly line. “We often produce only one item“, Bauer

The team of the pre-cut department

their skills and thus to find the appropri- locksmithery. Thus, the apprentices are ate workplace. HORSCH trains two con- always involved. structional mechanics every year. In 2016 the first girl started training as a construc- Flexibility is in demand tional mechanic. Traditionally, the Small units and in-house special orders The range of production HORSCH apprentices figure among the are daily business for the department. is from small batch series top performers with regard to the exam “We often have to react flexibly and to only one item. they have to pass at the Chamber of Com- quickly“, Jürgen Blaschke explains. merce. This year one of them even ranked “Sometimes we produce small batch se- first of all Bavarian apprentices. This ries, but often it is only one item. We surely is a result of the fact that the ap- work closely together with R & D or with says. Jürgen Blaschke adds: “And the prenticeship workshop is adjacent to the the test department.“ Martin Bauer adds: time targets sometimes are very ambi- tious.“ This is why expert knowledge and experience are essential. “New employ- ees usually are recruited from our own apprentices“, Grauvogl explains. “They normally trained as constructional me- chanics. The job profile differs widely from the one of the production mechanic – the latter is the profession most of HORSCH’s skilled workers are trained as. Constructional mechanics are traditional craftsmen with a multi-purpose training. The former name of the profession is locksmith. Stamina is a basic require- ment, they mustn’t mind dirt or noise, sometimes they are up to their neck in a machine“, Anton Grauvogl says and smiles. When selecting the apprentices it soon becomes evident who is fit for this The milling and turning programmes are prepared in the pre-cut depart- job - the more so as HORSCH always tries ment. to encourage the employees according to

20 Field work Wherever HORSCH prototypes are working, the construction mechanics are not far away. For it again and again is necessary to modify, add or repair some- thing. Therefore, working on test farms, for example AgroVation in the Czech Re- public, is daily business for the colleagues. They pack the most important tools and off they go – usually in pairs. And they do not know when they will be back, but definitely not before the machine works perfectly again. After all, the problem has to be solved. At AgroVation the mechanics can use the well-equipped workshop of the farm. Sometimes the conditions are more ad- verse. At any rate, the employees need special skills they often have acquired themselves. Jürgen Blaschke mentions retrofit-welding at machines with techni- cal problems as an example. “That’s com- pletely different from sitting on a chair in the workshop.“ The team of the welding department Visions become reality The most loyal, but also the most de- “In this case, we get the drawings and thing. Even if we had to stay in the work- manding customer of the welding and models via CAD. We then prepare the shop till three o’clock in the morning“, pre-cut department is the boss himself. milling programmes and so on ourselves. Grauvogl proudly states. For Michael Horsch the employees regu- This is quite challenging for our col- Only about 40 per cent of the orders larly produce whole machines over- leagues, for suppliers can normally set up for the welding and pre-cut department night. He often wants individual parts, the machines once and then an employee are regularly issued by SAP, the remain- too. Thus, they already have produced just starts the programme.“ der is rather individual. Work scheduling, fertiliser spreaders, several spraying And if it is particularly urgent, sud- thus, is individual, too. And if there is a booms or components for subsoilers. denly all processes are suspended and bottleneck at HORSCH Industrietechnik Some things become standard, some everyone tries to make the impossible or in the production department of things are just for basic research. The possible. “Sometimes it is almost a mira- HORSCH LEEB, they all know who to con- periods how long one topic is up to date cle. But so far we have managed every- tact... vary considerable. In some cases, noth- ing becomes standard even after five pre-series machines have been built. But it can also happen that already the pro- A final check-up is essential. totype is ready for the market. The departments get drawings or plans – more or less detailed, the exact realisation is discussed together. And if some details are not elaborate enough, the boss explains what the plan does not show. “But most of the time his ideas are very precise“, Anton Grauvogl says. The employees surely do not get bored. Those who appreciate business as usual and regular working hours will be out of place. But those to whom it appeals to sometimes play the role of the fire brigade will find a challenging, interesting and varied job in the weld- ing and pre-cut department.

21 terra Company insights Commerce vs. consumer

Yield increase, optimisation of cultivation methods, latest trends in plant protection – the consumer couldn’t care less. In the future, however, the consumers’ requirements will be the basis of what the food retailer will demand from the farm- ing sector. terraHORSCH talked to Michael und Philipp Horsch.

Michael Horsch Philipp Horsch

o far, the situation of the farming sector. Those who are not able to do so here in Germany surely with increased sector has been quite comfortable: will fall by the wayside. Thus, we are dynamics. In this respect Germany is play- The goods that were produced forced to change. But that fits like a glove ing a flagship role. Although it is quite normally found a market. The for HORSCH. paradox as we have the cheapest food. Squality criteria were more of a technical Philipp Horsch: It is quite obvious that But a lot of different countries have kind and co-ordinated with the further every single human being wants to have already been affected by the direct processing of the food industry. Michael a say - especially when it is about the pro- effects. Take GMO as an example – if the and Philipp Horsch are convinced that duction of food. The agricultural sector German consumer does no longer want this will change soon. They discussed the has the largest group of customers you to buy GMO-goods, it has direct conse- topic not only as manufacturers of agri- can imagine by far. For everyone has to quences for the producing countries. In cultural machinery, but mainly as practi- eat. Now the internet allows people to China, there is another development. cal farmers. network and at the same time they are Over there, the clear requirement is not getting more and more sensitive. So far only to achieve stable yields, but to use terraHORSCH: Who pushes the devel- we have been left alone, only few things less chemical products and to generate opment “Away from commercial towards have been questioned – but now the higher quality. In addition, a certain ratio a consumer-oriented farming”? agricultural sector, too, has to pay more of the population has to be employed in Michael Horsch: Go on YouTube and and more attention to its customers. the agricultural sector. Thus, the trend is enter “Krasse Aussage eines Wissen- terraHORSCH: In which regions has less towards super large farms – the schaftlers“. In the video that was record- this topic already come up? objective is privatisation with economi- ed during a hearing of the German Bun- Philipp Horsch: All over the world. But cally sensible farm sizes and lease. The destag (the meanwhile deceased) Prof. farmers are forced to manage their farm Dr. Peter Kruse has put it in a nutshell in an optimum way. For who does not, already in 2010: There will be a funda- will lose the lease. But the essential is: In mental power shift from supplier to con- such countries the development towards sumer. The world changes more and consumer-oriented farming takes place „Krasse Aussage eines more quickly and we have to deal with it Wissenschaftlers“ much faster. What took us 50 years, will – as an individual, as a company and as a take them only five. An example: away

22 Increased efficiency in plant protection: BoomControl guarantees a constantly low distance to the target area even in hilly terrain. Losses caused by drift are, thus, reduced to a minimum.

from nuclear power towards renewable with genetic engineering. But what if according to certain criteria. This is an energies. These countries are quite force- glyphosate would instead be noticed as addi-tional benefit! And a clear request ful. an instrument of tillage? All over the to all of us to change. Regional origin, Michael Horsch: ...and they skip our world glyphosate contributed to in- trace-ability, reduction of fertiliser and mistakes. crease the carbon content in the soil. The plant protection measures, GMO-free terraHORSCH: You have already men- higher the carbon content, the higher products, increase of rotation – that’s tioned quality. But what is quality? How the biological activity and the more what I hear over and over again from can quality be measured? nitrate is kept in the soil. If this instru- Aldi, Lidl and Co. Michael Horsch: There is an emotional ment is taken from us there is a double Philipp Horsch: And we have no coun- level and measurable quality by means effect: the humus content in the soil ter-arguments or alternatives to offer…. of various factors. In our region for ex- decreases and the nitrate in the ground- Michael Horsch: Except perhaps for ample there is an independent institute water increases. starting to plough again. But this would that analyses food samples. Bio can be Philipp Horsch: Adding to this is the be contradictory to the topics climate determined immediately as less pesticide climatic effect. More tillage means more respectively CO2-reduction. residues can be traced – even if this is CO2-emission and all that in two respects: terraHORSCH: What will be the conse- irrelevant in most cases. However, conta- combustion of diesel and release from quences of all this on organic farming? mination with fungi which is often the soil. But let’s get back to the ques- Philipp Horsch: The borders will higher in bio-cereals is quite a different tion: the farmer has a lot of influence. become more blurred. In the past, there matter. I am convinced: The quality of Via traceability he can prove quality and were a lot of conflicts between organic the food has never been as good as it is he can show that he improved it. We today. have to see all this as a new chance. Our Philipp Horsch: My brother is right. role is an active one – we have to get But the public thinks it is bad. That’s a going and prove that we are able to pro- little bit like the series of Spiegel maga- duce quality. However, we cannot afford zine “In former times everything was trickeries, for even little irregularities worse”. In my opinion, the much used would get out. term “sustainability” includes a lot of terraHORSCH: Will this be a new quality – everything that has a positive standard or an additional market seg- effect in the long run. And now back to ment? the farming sector: it has always pro- Philipp Horsch: New things often first duced high quality as the soils are take place in side sectors. But step by getting better in the long run. step they become normal. terraHORSCH: What influence does Michael Horsch: If we want to change the farmer have? farming, we have to abandon the previ- Michael Horsch: A lot is coming from ously main objective: maximise the yield. the outside. First there was the distinct In all discussions the large supermarket trend in Europe against genetic engineer- chains reveal what they expect in the ing. That’s finished. Now they include the future. The products have to be regional. Keyword digitisation: The iPad as the tool of plant protection agent glyphosate in the They want to prove to the customer that the farmer has become indispensable in the discussion as the consumer associates it the products have been produced agricultural sector.

23 terra Company insights

rated has to be stored in the cloud imme- diately. This increases data security and especially the quality of the data. Nothing can be tampered with after- wards. Philipp Horsch: However, bureaucracy should not be increased. I think of a sys- tem based on self-responsibility like for example for CE. The corresponding regu- lations are set up, but there are no obli- gatory controls. However, if something happens and a violation of the rules is detected, all hell will break loose. terraHORSCH: Who will provide the Mechanical weed control with the Cruiser XL necessary technology? Philipp Horsch: This is a central ques- tion for our sector. We have to find a and conventional farming. Both sides higher efforts by efficiency... point of view in this respect. The big mar- have to converge even further and learn terraHORSCH: Will there at least be a ket actors are already working on it from each other. By converging I mean: benefit for the farmer or only for the themselves, the medium-sized compa- Both sides have to move towards each food industry? nies can resort to co-operations. But I am other. But in the future, too, both sys- Philipp Horsch: Both will benefit. For not really sure if in the long run we all tems will continue to exist side by side. we all are connected. will play a role in this. The data volume terraHORSCH: Will the farmer, thus, be Michael Horsch: We, too, have to do is so large and dynamic – the big data able to achieve better prices? both: listen to the consumer, but also do concerns definitely will not miss out on Philipp Horsch: This will be regulated what we think is best. this business. by demand and the market. This is how terraHORSCH: Will farmers who do terraHORSCH: This immediately leads prices are generated. not join be able to market their products to the question of data security... terraHORSCH: So who is going to pay at all? Michael Horsch: Large companies like for the increased effort? Philipp Horsch: There probably will be for example Google have an enormous Michael Horsch: A typical question... various sectors in the market, a diversifi- interest in data security and they attach But it works the other way round! We as cation as in the industrial sector. Variety great importance to advertise this a manufacturer of agricultural machin- provides opportunities: Spelt cultivation interest; for otherwise they soon won’t ery, too, have to invest in advance each for example increases and more ancient get any more data. I believe that in the time we develop new products. However, grains are cultivated, but the market seg- future Google will even buy data. we do not consider ourselves to be the ments are so small. If something changes, Philipp Horsch: The topic “access” is one that adapts quickly to changing con- everything collapses already discussed in a heated and ditions, but to initiate and be actively terraHORSCH: How will the proof be emotional way. And some parties are involved in creating changes. Looking provided? really stoking fears. But data will always back at our company history, this is what Michael Horsch: By digitisation – the be accessible to those that have the per- we have always been doing. data is stored in a cloud. If necessary, it mission of the people who generate the Philipp Horsch: But there will always will be accessed. This system will only data. In my opinion, this will be become be the ones who will compensate for work with a cloud – the data as it is gene- a basic principle – perhaps not in all its shades and nuances, but to the greatest possible extent. Any misuse would get out someday – and then multi-milliards would be at stake. I am quite confident that in the future the farmer himself will hold the reins. Michael Horsch: Those who do not give their data voluntarily to reputable companies will inevitably be facing com- petitive disadvantages. Philipp Horsch: ... for no matter if the regulations are issued by the legislator or the food retailers: those who do not join in, will not be able to sell their products. This is discussed in a very populist way, Targeted fertilisation below the seed row with the HORSCH Fo- although in other sectors we handle this cus guarantees more efficient use and better availability. very carelessly.

24 nise opportunities are enormous and their business will continue to exist. Experiences with telemetry have already been made in Eastern Europe. Other branches are already working with such business models. Take a look at the constructional machinery sector: They do not only use telemetry to display the ser- vice intervals directly at the dealers’, but they use the gathered data to work out practical suggestions for optimisation for their customers. Thus, the productivity of the machines increases and the customer, of course, benefits from a direct increase of efficiency. terraHORSCH: Regardless of what hap- pens in the US from a political point of Singulation for wheat with the HORSCH Express KR to increase plant stability view what is your opinion on the free trade agreements? Michael Horsch: As farmers and as terraHORSCH: How will the data be step will be telemetry where the focus manufacturers of agricultural machinery: recorded? clearly is on the customer’s benefit – not only positive. If we question this, the Michael Horsch: In an automated way a huge functional range, but simple result would be considerably more with standardised tools with formats and handling. The consumer electronic sector unemployment. Now people are afraid. transmission modes that are network- shows us how it works. You do not need But remember the Euro: In the end, compatible. a manual or even training, everything is being an export country we only bene- Philipp Horsch: This is the direction we self-explanatory. I imagine a HORSCH fitted from it. In the agricultural sector, have already taken. If you look at the App world that will melt into the general too. patent applications in the agricultural app world. A complete agricultural envi- terraHORSCH: Back to your products: engineering sector, a lot of these appli- ronment will develop that can connect Where does HORSCH set the pace – with cations deal with sensor technology. The to our machines. regard to systems as well as to technol- point is that during each pass we are terraHORSCH: ... and in merely ogy? going to record data, like for example mechanical terms? Michael Horsch: Thanks to BoomCon- weather, geo, soil, humidity, plant, Michael Horsch: With regard to the trol for the HORSCH Leeb products we population data and so on. mechanical side we have already taken a are able to offer increased efficiency in terraHORSCH: Who is going to process direction: There will definitely be more plant protection. With regard to cereals the data and who can access it? mechanical weed control again. Key- we are focussing on singulation to in- Philipp Horsch: There will be service word: Cruiser. The system is already ope- crease the stability and the fitness of the providers who will edit and analyse it. An rational and works on a grand scale. And plant. With the Focus farmers can individual wouldn’t stand a chance as the it works best in rows. This could also be improve the fertiliser efficiency by tar- data volume is much too large and too an approach for crops. Although it surely geted placement, more efficient use and comprehensive. But there surely will be will be the biggest challenge to make a better availability even in dry regions. tools that will detect connections respec- changing system process capable. For We also focus on soil pressure and soil tively patterns, make predictions and mulch seed HORSCH succeeded in achiev- conservation. One approach is CTF: re- finally put additional auxiliary means at ing this goal. Today it can be used on the duce and bundle tracks and use power the farmer’s disposal. However, this most different farm sizes – it works on tracks – even for trailed machines. With requires the corresponding framework: 100 hectare, but also 10,000 hectare. regard to the interaction of CO2/tillage, for example high-speed internet connec- terraHORSCH: How can the specialised in my opinion the use of glyphosate is tions in the country – in this respect Ger- trade sector keep up with all this? indispensable. Increased catch crop culti- many still lags behind. Philipp Horsch: The chances are vation that is required by the population Michael Horsch: ... even out in the immense and there will be new business simply will not work without this tool. sticks in Azerbaidzhan you have a 4G segments. In counselling, in support – the The same is true for erosion protection, connection! farmer cannot do all this himself and particularly for spring crops. However, terraHORSCH: How do you as a manu- neither does he want to. The bunch is there are other approaches, too. In facturer of agricultural machinery have huge, but requires creativity and remains France, they are carrying out tests with to react to this? subject to economic laws. We surely have permanent plant coverage to be always Philipp Horsch: By more and more possibilities to get involved. But it is the able to use maximum photosynthesis. electronics. We intensively work on the same as for the agricultural sector: do The core crop is the field bean. This is not connection between machine and cloud. not bury your head in the sand. The a bad idea, but it has to be controllable The market release won’t be long. A first options for those who are able to recog- anytime.

25 terra Farm report

Exemplary

The Südzucker company is one of the world’s largest sugar producers. The fact that they also manage own farms has traditional reasons. By doing exemplary farming they can provide the farmers with informa- tion about varieties and cultivation methods. And they work with HORSCH machines.

Martin Müller (left) is the head of the farming and agricultural engineering sector of the farming/commodity market division. Jakob Dongus (right), farm manager of the Schafhof farm, also is one of the two drivers of the HORSCH Leeb GS 8000.

ike the potato the sugar beet, too, rounding fields. In 1862 they managed to Experimentation and testing is a relatively young crop in Ger- lease the estates in Baden that, by the “One of our main tasks today is exem- many. Whereas the first one came way, are still farmed by Südzucker. They plary farming“, Müller continues. “We to us from South America, the sugar partly produced up to 50 per cent of the co-operate with the Board of Trustees for Lbeet was bred from the native fodder processed beets themselves. Experimentation and Counselling in beet. However, at first, the farmers were “Today, however, the share is negligi- Sugar Beet Farming. We carry out variety sceptical or knew nothing about the cul- ble“, Martin Müller comments. He is the and cultivation tests on a large scale that tivation methods. With regard to pota- head of the farming and agricultural en- would not be possible on private farms. toes it allegedly was King Frederik the gineering sector of the farming/commod- For example with regard to tillage, in this Great who established them in Prussia. ity market division seated in Ochsenfurt. sector we do tests with NoTill, ploughing, The cultivation of sugar beets was en- “Even though today we are farming mulch seed and StripTill. The tests con- couraged by Napoleon Bonaparte when about 10,000 hectare in Germany.“ tinuously run over several years, partly the trade routes were blocked by war. For other estates, mostly in the posses- we have been testing since the 80s. With The result was that sugar refineries devel- sion of the State, the gentry or of founda- regard to sugar beet, we are at the mo- oped all over Europe. tions were added to the estates in Baden. ment focussing on the harvest, especially Today’s Südzucker AG was founded in At the same time more sugar refineries on the topping as this has consequences Waghaeusel in Baden in 1837 on the oc- were built in South Western Germany. on the price mask. The farmers will surely casion of building such a sugar refinery. Since 1907 Südzucker has been extending benefit from the results. In this respect To guarantee the supply of raw material, its activities to Franconia and after the we are working with the first nine-row a separate agricultural department German Reunification also to Saxony and beet harvester in South Germany, a Hol- started to grow sugar beet on the sur- Thuringia. mer Terra Dos T4-40. And it works excel-

26 lently, by the way. I like the row-related Large variety Jakob Dongus comes in. He is the farm depth control where a sensor above the The Südzucker farms are divided into manager of the Schafhof farm near heads scans how deeply the beets are five groups in West Germany and four in Wertheim/Franconia und is responsible seated. Before, this system was rigid so East Germany. For all of them the ma- for the GS. that working depth always depended on chines are purchased centrally in Ochsen- deepest row. We benefit from sowing furt, however of course upon consulta- Impressed right from the beginning with 18 rows. Otherwise the nine-row tion with the farm managers on site and Dongus trained with Südzucker and machine would probably have more dif- from the local dealers. For almost every- already worked on a farm in Moldavia as ficulties. And it is remarkable how light thing depends on the service. To a technical manager. The Schafhof farm the machine is. Our harvester weighs less strengthen the commerce, they do not is part of the Betriebsgemeinschaft (col- than the six-row machine of the previous buy packages. lective farming group) Franken that con- generation. Efficiency is also important. Every Südzucker farm has its own sists of five sites with about 1,400 hectare Before, we needed 42 to 45 litre diesel farmstead. Machines and staff, however, in the Wuerzburg, Wertheim, Tauber- per hectare, now we need 31 to 32 litre. partly work on all farms. bischofsheim and Schweinfurt region. That’s a good one third less. The technol- “We mostly work with Fendt and John “We have a five-part rotation“, he ex- ogy is very reliable and efficient. Our re- Deere tractors“, Müller says. “And re- plains. “With a share of 20 to 22 per cent cord was 2.2 hectare per hour. However, cently also with Claas. The latter – except the focus is on sugar beet. For cereals, transportation is the crux. We have tried for one John Deere – is our main brand one particularity is the hybrid rye multi- a lot – we modified harvesters, worked for combines. With regard to tillage and plication. On the worse fields we grow with tippers, for our fields in Kraichgau seed drills we rely on HORSCH. On the rape and spelt. For the latter we slowed for example cannot be worked on when farms there are four Joker, three Terrano, down because of the bad market situa- it is wet. In the meantime we have ended two Pronto KE, seven Pronto DC and a tion.“ up with the Holmer Terra Variant We dis- Focus for StripTill. Dongus is responsible for the planning cussed a lot among colleagues, not ev- In the plant protection sector we use of the GS and takes turns with another eryone was convinced, but we took the a HORSCH Leeb PT 280 and since the past employee in driving the sprayer. right decision. We also use the vehicle for season we have been working with a GS But first of all the machine had to be the crop harvest and for tillage.” 8000 with a 36-meter-boom. This is where purchased. And here again Martin Müller

27 terra Farm report

little bit wet, there are no tracks that have to be taken care of during tillage. The GS was ordered with a track width of 225 cm. The sprayer, thus, is more stable than with a 180-cm track width. The axle steering adds to this. There have been problems with sprayers with drawbar steering. „We have knocked a sprayer over once before while entering the field,“ Martin Müller admits. In addition to BoomControl Pro Müller is fascinated by another feature: Section- Control. „It really is fun to see how the system works. Provided that the driver does not start too fast, for the control system takes some time. But we only use the best drivers for the sprayers anyway. And in this case working quality and ef- ficiency are optimum.“ was responsible. He already knows appreciates other additional features in HORSCH products from his training farm his daily work: „For beet the tank has to Possible alternatives where they used a Seed-Exactor. His ex- be absolutely clean. Due to the stainless But with regard to the field sizes and perience is: “With HORSCH you notice steel tank, but especially due to the con- the structure – the average field size is that their basis is not agricultural engi- tinuous inside cleaning system this is the about 15 hectare – wouldn’t a self-pro- neering, but practical farming. Some- case for the GS. Moreover, the lower part pelled sprayer be an alternative? “No,“ times, however, the system took a direc- of the sprayer tank has no large corners Müller says. “On the Franconian farms we tion that came to nothing.“ But with the and edges what is very favourable when have four large tractors which are used GS he was immediately thrilled. “I saw treating the rape flowers.“ to full capacity. There are no resources the sprayer for the first time at a demon- Jakob Dongus drives the GS 8000 with left. And with our hilly terrain it is no use stration in Seligenstadt. And it was really an operational speed of 13 to 16 km/h. to link the HORSCH GS 8000 to a 200-hp impressive – especially the boom control “We had to take a careful approach, but tractor. For our target speed 300 hp is system.“ This impression was confirmed in the meantime it also works on slopes. much more appropriate. Of course, with when he saw the GS a second time during Thus, you can do 270 hectare, without regard to the price the whole rig is more a demonstration at Sitzenhof. The deci- water supply, on a ten-hour day. Pro- expensive than a self-propelled sprayer. sion virtually was already made, however vided that everything is ok. So it was a But I can use the tractor for other things, without knowing the price. “When I good decision to change from a working too, and I still do not miss out on one learned how much the sprayer was going width of 24 m to 36 m. We spent a great single hectare per day.“ to cost, my enthusiasm was a little bit deal of time thinking about it.“ The GS sprays about 5,000 hectare per dampened. For it was almost twice as The farm does without maintenance year, Müller would use a self-propelled much as I had planned! Moreover I was tyres. The tractor has 710 tyres and the sprayer starting at about 15,000 hectare. sceptical that BoomControl Pro would sprayer 650 ones. Even if conditions are a In either case population manage- work on our extremely hilly terrain. So we tested it on our farms – with a second sprayer up in our sleeves just in case. But the second one only stood around. It was exclusively the GS that worked.“

Advantages in practice The positive impression was confirmed after the first season. “Due to the 25-noz- zle spacing and the boom control system you get very close to the population,“ Müller states his experience. “This really only works with BoomControl Pro. And we can spray longer if there is wind – without any drift. It is a pleasure to see the mist going down.“ Even if for Müller the boom control system was the most important feature for his purchase decision, Jakob Dongus

28 ment has to be optimum and has to be works well on large realigned farms like sion can also be prevented by mulch seed. planned in advance. “I cannot afford to AgroVation in the Czech Republic. But in Moreover, farmers will not be able to af- decide only in the morning what I have our case a lot of things are impossible ford two systems side by side.” to do all day“, Jakob Dongus comments. only because of the road traffic regula- At the end there is one thing Müller “The communication between the farm tions. Though this partly is a political wants to point out: “The media often managers has to work. The GS replaced topic. In general, manufacturers of agri- comments critically on our farm size. two sprayers on three sites. In former cultural machinery have to deal more That’s not fair. We manage our farms the times, there often was the “there is al- intensely with the logistics topic. It’s a lot same way as agricultural farms. And the ways a sprayer available anyway”-effect. that can be done in this respect. We families of our employees also make their Today the GS’s schedule is perfectly or- nonetheless learn from CTF farms. For living. All farmers benefit from our tests. ganised.“ In the future, they plan to im- example Claas now offers the long dis- After all the Südzucker AG is majority- prove water management and to intro- charge tube ex factory.“ owned by farmers. And moreover it is duce a shift model. Müller has already made his own ex- always good for a company to know both periences with StripTill. Though he is not sides – that of the raw material supplier, Looking ahead completely convinced: “In our conditions, too.“ But what does Müller think of the new the soil does not heat up to such an ex- crop production strategies? “CTF surely tent that yields would increase. And ero- terra Farm report Unrivalled

Ing. Ladislav Janáček is the agronomist of the agricultural co-operative PD Zahorie in Jablonica (Slovakia). The farm is one of the pioneers in no-till farming. By now, a lot of successful farmers work according to this system. He talked to terraHORSCH about his experiences.

ever before has agriculture in change of the physical, chemical and bio- Ing. Ladislav Janáček has been working Slovakia faced such changes logical soil characteristics were notice- successfully with the MinTill principle already than at present. In addition to able. The reduction of the cultivation since 1996. the production of food and raw intensity at the same time resulted in Nmaterials in sufficient quantity and qual- considerable cost savings. For a lot of ity there are other challenges, for exam- farms, this economic effect was an addi- 1960s the Institute has been dealing with ple the conservation of the cultivated tional incentive to reorganise their tillage this topic from a scientific point of view. landscape and the protection of the en- method. Doz. Ing. Miron Šuškievič, DrSc, did not vironment. For the latter the focus is only provide professional, but also moral mainly on soil fertility, water balance as With scientific support support. well as aspects of biodiversity and eco- Our agricultural co-operative PD Záho- In the beginning, it was not easy. We stability. This is all the more important as rie Jablonica farms about 2,200 hectare did neither have appropriate machines in Slovakia about 750,000 hectare of ar- in the less fertile regions of Western Slo- nor experience. We very much appreci- able land have already been damaged by vakia, between the sandy soils of Zahorie ated the exchange with our East German soil de-generation and compaction and and the hilly region of Myjava. In this partner farm, LPG Kahlwinkel that for about one million hectare by erosion. region, intensive farming is less effective. several years had already been working Sustainable cultivation technologies like The price for medium soil qualities is quite successfully with the no-till system. minimum tillage are one approach to 1,250 Euro per hectare, the expenses for The most convincing argument was the solve the problems. conventional cultivation account for 50 increased efficiency that in addition al- Since the mid-1990s more and more per cent of the total costs of plant pro- lowed for making optimum use of the Slovakian farmers realised that no-till duction. For already 20 years we have short time frame. Moreover, cost savings farming is a good possibility to improve been co-operating with neighbouring are possible with regard to fuel, machines soil characteristics, to reduce water and farms with regard to no-till cultivation. and working hours. wind erosion, to maintain soil moisture As we entered absolutely unknown terri- as well as to increase the organic matter tory, we were very happy about the sup- According to schedule content and enrich the soil with humus. port we got from the Research Institute When we introduced the system on Already after the first years the positive Hrušovany near Brno. Already since the our own farm we worked according to a strict schedule to achieve comparable re- sults. We began to work without a plough on 40 per cent of our fields. For lack of own machines we borrowed Tye, Kinze and Great Plains seed drills. We even experimented with direct drilling. For seedbed preparation we used an ex- isting two-bar Kromexin cultivator and a Cífer disc harrow. However, these ma- chines were not very suitable. At the sug- gestion of our German partner farm we decided to buy HORSCH machines. In 1996 our co-operative bought a HORSCH Seed-Exactor SE 3 with three metre working width. Although at that time we did not have an appropriate ma- chine for seedbed preparation, the Seed- Exactor worked excellently. The rotating tools even crushed existing stones. After five years it was replaced by an even The front tyre packer of the HORSCH Sprinter 6 ST PPF levels the surface in front of the Duett coulters. Large tyre spacings allow for a lateral movement of the earth and thus prevents more efficient HORSCH Airseeder that in undesired undulation. Slovakia was called Concord. Then we

30 higher by 30 per cent, the fuel require- ment is lower by 25 per cent. More and more farmers in Slovakia follow the HORSCH philosophy and are no longer satisfied with a visually appeal- ing field surface, but are interested in what happens below the surface. This is particularly true for farms in the dry re- gions and with heavy soils. Today, in Slo- vakia there already is a large number of farms that with HORSCH machines have Because of the challenging soil conditions with been achieving excellent result with re- a lot of stones the farm’s Sprinter is equipped with Duett coulters with wedge-shaped plates gard to work efficiency and active soil The HORSCH Terrano 6 FG prepares the made of steel. conservation. In their regions, they are seedbed for sowing winter wheat after winter rape. After a first shallow stubble cultivation the pioneers of the no-till system and at a working depth of 3 to 4 cm weeds and pass on their practical experiences. The the emerged volunteer rape are sprayed. Due bought a cultivator, a HORSCH Terrano most enthousiastic ones are the farms PD to the good soil structure after rape a second pass with the Terrano at a working depth of FG. The working width of both machines Prašice, PD Močenok, Poľnohospodár 10 cm is enough. Thus, the soil moisture is was six metre. This was the moment Nové Zámky, ZAD Dvory nad Žitavou, Do- preserved to a large extent when we converted our whole farm to naufarm Kalná nad Hronom or Agroris the no-till system. In 2009, we bought Rimavská Sobota as well as our farm another seed drill, a HORSCH Sprinter. Záhorie Jablonica. management, i.e. for better fungicides, Apart from the positive influences on growth regulators, fertilisers, or for the the soil: Working without a plough re- The soil is the most valuable asset further improvement of the technical sulted in cost savings of about 42 Euro To summarise the advantages of the equipment. per hectare! system: the lower work requirement, the As the agronomist of PD Jablonica I significant saving of time, a better meet- appreciate the soil I am entrusted with as The advantages of no-till ing of the deadlines for the individual the most important asset. Its protection I have been watching the technical measures, the more effective erosion pro- is my most urgent task. In this context I developments of the HORSCH company tection, the reduced soil compaction, the consider the HORSCH philosophy to be for already two decades. There has al- increase of organic soil components and unrivalled and environmentally-friendly. ways been a lot to discuss: How deep do the protection of the soil. The soil struc- And my motto when putting this philoso- you have to cultivate the soil? What is the ture that, thus, is created on the other phy into practice is Mahatma Gandhis ideal sequence of the cultivation steps? hand improves the absorption of rainfall idea: „You must be the change you want What is better: tines or discs? There is no and facilitates the rooting of the soil. to see in the world.“ general answer to any of these questions. Moreover, the economic analyses show But with the last one I dealt a little bit that in Slovakia the diesel requirement more intensively. depending on the rotation for conven- On our farm we work with a HORSCH tional tillage amounts to 140 to 150 l/ha, Tiger AS as well as with a Tiger MT. In my for minimum tillage to 90 to 100 l/ha and opinion the Tiger is the most accom- for the StripTill system to 50 to 60 l/ha. plished HORSCH machine ever. It is defi- This means no-till cultivation alone re- nitely better than the soil-damaging sults in diesel savings of about 30 per plough. The soil is cultivated intensively cent. The objective is to use the financial in a depth of 35 cm. And while compared means that have been saved mostly for to the plough the output of the Tiger is the improvement of the plant population

Sowing winter barley with the HORSCH Sprinter 6 ST PPF

Despite an unfavourable soil quality Ing. Ladislav Janáček has been achieving constantly high rape and cereal yields for years due to the optimised cultivation technologies.

31 terra Service & Sales Farmer & entrepreneur

The Ukrainian company Poletehnika is based on several pillars. The basis is farming. In addition, there is the trade with machines as well as cereals, seed and fertiliser. terraHORSCH talked to the founder of the company Alexan- der Mistyuk.

Company founder Alexander Mistyuk

ou can almost call it an empire. main markets are Egypt, Italy and Turkey. an annual turnover of twelve million For what Alexander Mistyuk Alexander Mistyuk has his own cleaning, Euro. built up over the years really is drying and silage plants in the harbour. huge. About 1,200 people are And of course: He also runs a trading Leading manufacturers Yworking for his company Poletehnika company for this technology produced Alexander Mistyuk refers to himself as that is divided into three branches: farm- by the Italian manufacturer Safrani. The being the largest dealer of agricultural ing, trade and service of agricultural ma- turnover of this line of business alone machinery in the Ukraine. In 2016 he has chinery as well as trade with seed and amounts to ten million Euros. already sold more than 1,200 units. It is fertiliser. The sunflowers are processed in their his objective to provide the best technol- On two sites, one in his home in the own oil mill, oil and cake are exported. ogy worldwide for his customers. South of the country, one near the capi- Another mainstay is the trade with fer- “Though not in the form of steel and tal Kiev, he farms about 40,000 hectare. tiliser and plant protection agents as iron“, Mistyuk says. “At some shows you Every year some one hundred hectare is well as with seed. In this sector, the main almost get scared when you see some of added. In 2016, he has already added partner is Limagrain. Moreover, Mistyuk the exhibited machines. I, however, at- 2,000. When extending the farms, also offers products from Syngenta, tach great importance to the fact that we Mistyuk sees to it that the fields are near Monsanto and BASF. This sector achieves offer complete cultivation systems to the his farms. Everything else would not make much sense from a logistic point of view. The lease contracts mostly are long- term, the contract period sometimes amounts to 50 years. The prices tend to rise.

Several pillars The farms exclusively use machines that are sold by the company – tractors from New Holland, tillage equipment and seed drills from HORSCH and spray- ers from Berthoud. The farm that is situ- ated in a more arable farming region mainly grows wheat and sunflowers. The trade in cereals is directly related to the farming business. About half a mil- lion tons are marketed to be exported to The Poletehnika site in Batkivshina more than 20 countries, 100,000 tons of this comes from their own farm. The

32 A large spare part stock guarantees a quick supply back from the market and handle war- ranties. The initial use training for the machine is made by the Poletehnika tech- nicians themselves. All machines are built in Germany and finally assembled in the Ukraine.

All over the Ukraine Poletehnika is active in the whole Ukraine. Every sector is run as an inde- pendent profit centre with its own man- aging director. In the service sector alone 130 employ- Alexander Mistyuk (centre) and his team regularly visit Sitzenhof for the annual meeting with ees work all over the country. They get Johannes Kluth (2.from the right). their parts from a central stock and go on tour with their own vehicle. The topic of service contracts is rather new. Analysis customer. Part of this is not to just sell a lationship with HORSCH is quite a special showed that this is particularly interest- certain range of products, but to provide one. This is mostly due to Traugott Horsch ing for large farms. Alexander Mistyuk solutions for problems. Poletehnika does who built up the Ukrainian market, but had an enquiry carried out among 20 not offer its customer what the company also to Johannes Kluth who is now res- customers, 16 of which were interested. has in its portfolio, but was the customer ponsible for our country.“ “We benefit from such a system, but the needs.“ Together with HORSCH Mistyuk has farmer does, too“, he is convinced. “We Machines from HORSCH are, of course, already achieved a lot. The technology is both can calculate in a much better way. part of it. After some negative experi- perfect for the Ukraine: simple, safe and And the operating reliability of the ma- ences with other manufacturers Alexan- efficient. And he made a bet with Mi- chine is guaranteed. A service technician der Mistyuk took a look around. The first chael Horsch that the Ukraine will be is like a doctor – he can do quite a few contact took place during a show. After completely red. things with regard to prophylaxis.“ that there were several visits and both In the beginning, they concentrated The schedule for the technicians is set sides realised: It works. on a few products, for example the Joker. up by so-called dispatchers who via GPS What Mistyuk appreciates about In the meantime, Poletehnika and know exactly where the service vehicle is HORSCH is that they argue on the basis HORSCH have developed a large market located. In this sector alone there are six of farming methods: “The Horsch broth- volume. The Pronto NT is particularly suc- employees for the different regions. ers are farmers themselves, they know cessful. But to simply sell the existing There are no differentiated charge the requirements and the problems and technology, was not enough for Alexan- rates for the different qualification of the they act accordingly. And HORSCH is not der Mistyuk. He had some special ideas. technicians – except for the highly spe- limited to Europe, they do business all When HORSCH learned about his market cialised electronic technicians. over the world. Already today, they are forecast, they calculated and the Pronto thinking about what will happen tomor- NT was developed. 50 units of this ma- Future plans row. And they are enthusiastic about chine alone have been sold in 2016. For It has already been mentioned that what they do. The same is true for me Poletehnika it was the second most im- Alexander Mistyuk wants to colour the and that’s the reason why we get on so portant money maker ever. Ukraine red. The HORSCH Leeb plant well.“ HORSCH has their own service techni- protection sprayers are part of this plan. cians in the Ukraine who often go to the According to Mistyuk there is a lot of po- Mutual trust customers together with technicians of tential for the self-propelled sprayers. “If you don’t trust each other, co-op- Poletehnika. Their speciality are train- Poletehnika has already organised some eration will not work“, Alexander ings, moreover they provide feed- demonstrations und the feedback from Mistyuk states. “This is true with regard the customers was excellent. For the to my employees and also to my suppli- trailed sprayers, too, the market ers. I have already done business with entry in the Ukraine more than 30 manufacturers, but the re- started very well.

The HORSCH Pronto 12 NT runs on Poletehnika’s agricultural farm.

33 terra Machinery test HORSCH Joker RT with knife roller

Over the years compact disc harrows for stubble cultivation have established themselves on quite a lot of farm. But the field of application is much wider. Compact disc harrows like those from the HORSCH Joker line are also ideal for the second pass to “keep the soil black” and especially for seedbed preparation. For an optimum use on the seedbed HORSCH has been offering a Crossbar to be mounted at the front of the Joker 5/6 and 8 RT for some years. This levelling tool consists of spring tines and allows for transporting soil with the Joker in a longitudinal direction and achieving excellent results especially after plough.

ince the Agritechnica 2016 it has position. The lifting height of the knife 1.Stubble cultivation after rape: been possible to use the mounting roller guarantees that clearance is main- The challenge with regard to stubble area of the Crossbar on the Joker tained to the full extent. cultivation after rape consists of two 5/6 and 8 RT for the HORSCH knife points that have different requirements. Sroller that is mounted at the front diago- Intended use On the one hand the volunteer rape nally over the whole working width. The There are basically four fields of ap- grains must not be incorporated too diameter of the HORSCH knife roller is plication for the HORSCH knife roller: deeply to make sure that they safely 300 mm and the roller is equipped with six knives made of boron steel on the out- side diameter. This results in a cutting length of 16 cm. The roller body consists of a closed tube where the knives can seat solidly. Thus, very high cutting forces can be absorbed which is very advanta- geous on hard or stony soils and with tough harvest residues. The weight trans- fer from the basic Joker harrow to the knife roller is carried out by hydraulic cylinders. They are pre-tensioned hydrau- lically and act as an overload protection in case of a contact with foreign objects, e.g. stones. If the knife roller is not used, it can be folded upwards to the parking Solid knives guarantee a long service life. 34 emerge. On the other hand the rape is mixed in more deeply – approx. 3 cm, cent caused by old rape. The losses are on stubbles have to be destroyed completely these grains enter into dormancy and re- the one hand due to rape rotation ill- so they stop transporting water from the main in the so-called “soil stock”. A lot of nesses which survive over the years be- soil respectively growing. rape farmers know this situation: With cause of the old rape that emerges again If the harvest conditions are good and every cultivation pass old rape seeds are and again (especially clubroot). On the if the combine is adjusted correctly, be- transported to the surface and emerge. other hand they result from the fact that tween 300 and 800 rape grains per square If they emerge in crops like cereals or the old rape has already derived from the metre remain on the field depending on maize, the old rape plants can be re- descendants of the cultivated hybrid va- the yield. It is imperative to separate moved easily. However, if the old rape rieties that suffer a noticeable yield loss them in the first pass from straw respec- emerges in the rotation together with already in the first generation of de- tively from the silique material, create the newly sown rape it is not possible to scendants. We are talking about a 70-per- contact to the soil and thus initiate the fight the old rape. If you ask around cent potential in the first generation of emergence of the largest possible part of among the experts or if you read profes- descendants compared to the original the grains immediately after the harvest. sional articles on this topic, they all speak material that was used for sowing. If during this first pass part of the grains of yield losses between 20 and 30 per This is where the HORSCH knife roller comes in. This fast-turning tool for the Joker 5/6 and 8 RT can be driven with speeds between 12 and 18 km/h and due to its high circumferential speed can carry out the following worksteps: b Take up the rape straw to shake seed from the straw respectively from the si- lique material and place it on the ground. b Smash and crush the rape stubble. This creates short and readily biodegradable straw residues that can be incorporated easily; stubbles are effectively prevented from growing any further. These effects can already be achieved by disturbing the soil only to a minor ex- tent, i.e. the knife roller itself only moves Even sunflower stubble is crushed reliably. 35 terra Machinery test

tablished. The knife roller helps by cut- ting and crushing the organic residues to incorporate them in a better and more regular way. This pass is very interesting especially on heavy soils as, thus, the disc harrow does not have to work very deeply to achieve a good mixing result. Every farmer with heavy, clayey soils knows this problem: the danger to create smear layers in the partly still very wet soils, especially if you have to work deeply to achieve a sufficient degree of mixing of the catch crop residues for a proper seedbed.

4. Incorporation of sunflower stub- bles: In many cases sunflower stubbles If the knife roller is not required, it can be lifted hydraulically. should be incorporated relatively shallow – up to approx. 10 cm – to prevent that the generally very dry soils in the sun- flower growing regions dry out even approx. 1 to 2 cm of soil, the disc system harvest. Additionally, the tine section of more. Considering the large amount of of the compact disc harrow works at a the Joker RT can be used to carry out the tenacious, partly very long harvest resi- very shallow level up to not touching the first tillage pass and to generate fine dues this often cannot be managed in soil at all and the packer guarantees ideal earth for example for a subsequent sow- only one pass. Several passes with the seed-soil contact and emergence condi- ing. compact disc harrow, however, cost tions. money, but especially valuable residual Thus the combination of the Joker RT 3.Incorporation of catch crop populati- humidity that is indispensable for the fol- with the knife roller allows for carrying on: lowing crop. The HORSCH knife roller out the ideal passes with regard to field In the course of greening and erosion crushes and intensely mixes in harvest hygiene after rape. protection measures the cultivation of residues and sunflower stubbles all in one Two passes with the Joker RT-knife catch crops has increased massively. The pass. Experiences have shown that al- roller combination proved to be very ef- objective of catch crop cultivation is to ready with one pass you can for example ficient: the first pass very shallow – 1 to 2 grow a well-established, closed popula- create a seedbed for winter wheat. The cm, and between 7 to 14 days later a sec- tion to suppress volunteer crops and to reduced number of passes additionally ond pass to generate a possible second achieve a sufficient covering of the soil. helps to maintain the very good soil emergence wave, at a depth of about 3 The population often grows fast and structure after sunflowers. to 4 cm. forms considerable vegetative material. Using a compact disc harrow is very ef- The knife roller at the Joker RT can be ficient in a lot of conditions. With tar- 2.„Stublle cultivation“ on silage maize used under two different aspects. On the geted developments in the sector of ad- stubble: one hand in autumn to prevent for exam- ditional equipment the range of use of The challenge after silage maize is to ple the development of seeds by simple the HORSCH Joker 5/6 and 8 RT has been destroy the stubbles effectively to make rolling and crushing. It will, however, increased. The latest development of the sure that there are no wintering grounds mainly be used in spring when after a HORSCH knife roller helps the farmer to left for the corn borer. If maize stubbles good catch crop population sugar beet, work even more specifically in varying with an intact lowest internode remain maize or other spring crops are to be es- conditions. on the field, the corn borer is offered op- timum conditions to survive the winter months, even if it is very cold. Thus, in regions where a lot of maize is grown, efficient stubble destruction even for si- lage maize is obligatory. The Joker RT with knife roller is an ideal tool. The knife roller is able to crush and fan out stubbles in order to deprive the corn borer of his chances to survive the winter. The big advantage of this tool: It also destroys stubbles that would The knife roller works excellently in rape Even silage maize stubble is crushed and mixed inevitably be pressed down during the stubble. in in an optimum way.

36 Inside HORSCH terra

Name: Dr. Sebastian Villwock Head of Research & Development Born in 1977, married to Andrea, two children Has been working for HORSCH since December 2015

In the HORSCH Research & Develop- ment department the electronics engineers by now outnumber the classical mechanical engineers. Consequently, the head of R & D is an electrical engineer. terraHORSCH introduces Dr. Sebastian Villwock. Creative leeway

Professional background: the numerous specialist topics a large Studied Electrical Engineering with focus spectrum of tasks. Despite the responsibil- on automation technology at the Univer- ity for operative tasks there still is a lot of sity Siegen and graduated as Dipl-Ing room for innovation and research topics. (equiv. MSc). Then research assistant at the Institute for Power Electronics and What I like about HORSCH: Drive Engineering where he passed his In a time that in general gets more and doctorate. Entry into the industrial sector more superficial and volatile I attach with an employment at the Baumüller great importance to a clear value orienta- Nürnberg GmbH, a traditional manufac- tion with regard to the interaction with turer of electric drives. After some years other people on a very deep and funda- changing to the Hamm AG, a company mental level. In everyday business life I that is part of the Wirtgen construction appreciate the short decision-making machine group, as head of control engi- channels on the one hand and the free- One can no longer imagine the sector of agricultural engineering without electronics, neering. Interesting research projects in dom of decision-making that I am grant- Dr. Villwock’s specialist field and pet passion. co-operation with various universities. ed on the other hand. I also really enjoy And it develops rapidly. Since 1st of December 2016 head of R & the willingness to strike unconventional, D at HORSCH. new paths. Objectives: My division: The further development of the depart- The main task is the technical development ment. And especially the continuous fur- of our products. Among this figure not ther development of the framework con- only the mechanical design and the elec- ditions for the co-ordination of our tronics development, but also the variant numerous projects. However, there still is management, the product management to be enough room to approach matters (sort of the ministry of foreign affairs of in an un-bureaucratic and pragmatic way. the department), the test department and the operational stability team. Special experiences at work: I like working together with people. This Employees: is why during my professional career I 68, divided into nine teams veered further and further away from the expert career I originally pursued. I always A constant exchange with the teams is What I like about my job: essential for the development of innovative enjoy working on innovative technologies I have a lot of creative leeway and due to technologies. in a team.

37 terra Inside HORSCH Active integration

“Good morning. How are you?“ This is how our refugee-apprentices greet us every day. Since this year refugees have been working at the HORSCH sites in Schwandorf and Landau and ten apprentices with migration background have been starting their apprenticeship. It was quite difficult to create the necessary framework, but now all these people who came to us hoping for a better life have found a new home at HORSCH.

For its refugee work with Schwan- dorf’s cross cultural training pro- gramme HORSCH was award the most important HR award in Germany – the HR Excellence Award. On December 2nd 2016, Cornelia Horsch, head of training Anton Grauvogl and head of HR Gerhard Springs received the prize in the Berliner Tipi of the chancellery. HORSCH ranked first in the category “Innovation” and was honoured for the nationwide exemplary character of the project and the courage, the perseverance and the passion that was involved.

The crucial factor for integration: normality. The new employees are a normal part of the company and of the operating schedule and they have to perform well in their team.

or HORSCH it is important to take company owners. After all the company of the trade and the basic skills for the on social responsibility. The idea to benefits, too, for good labour is always future. integrate refugees has already in demand. And even if the refugees The basis is a project called “Crossing been pursued for quite some time return to their native country, they at Lifelines“ where the young refugees get Fand has particularly been pushed by the least have been provided with the tools to know German culture and also are able to make contact with companies. The first internships at HORSCH resulted from this project. It quickly became clear who would be suitable for an apprentice- ship. “We require a certain commitment from all our apprentices“, Anton Grau- vogl, head of training at HORSCH, ex- plains. “Everything else we will sort out ourselves. This is also true for the refu- gees.“ Another key factor was the language, though the level of the candidates al- ready was quite high. You have to know that for example in Afghanistan several languages are spoken and, among each other, the refugees quite often take a “detour” via the German language. However, the differences with regard Head of HR Gerhard Springs (right) and head of training Anton Grauvogl (left) talk about how to the educational level that varies de- the integration of refugees worked at the HORSCH company. pending on the continent, the country

38 German held by a teacher from the voca- tional school centre. The biggest obstacle will be the oral exam. They all attend their companies, vocational school, but especially the ado- lescents themselves – work on it intensely. There must not be and there shall not be any privileges for refugees. That’s what the apprentices themselves really do not want at all. The young people live and learn together. The integration into the company was surprisingly easy, among the permanent employees as well as among the appren- and the educational system are quite round table of all parties concerned - the tices. The owner family frankly talked to considerable. companies, the authorities, the social ser- the employees about their attitude. “At “Right from the start we knew that we vices - brought about a breakthrough. the beginning we often thought about would have to lower the entry threshold And all were finally able to find solutions. what we would have to do to encourage for the applicants a little bit, whereas Now everything has got back to nor- integration“, Gerhard Springs remem- during the apprenticeship we quickly mal. In the district of Schwandorf a cross bers. “Until we finally realised: normality would have to draw level again“, Ger- cultural training programmed came into is crucial. The new employees are a nor- hard Springs, head of HR, explains. “For being which HORSCH, the electronic com- mal part of the company and of the op- the exam level does not change. They all pany emz-Hanauer, Wolf Sausage Speci- erating schedule and they have to per- have to perform equally.“ alities and the building material manu- form well in their team. In this respect, The ten apprentices that train to be facturer tremco illbruck participate in. during the Check-In Days the refugee- metal technology specialists come from Thus, there now are a total of 14 appren- apprentices like the other apprentices, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Somalia, the Ivory tices which in the framework of a pilot too, had to hold a speech in front of the Coast and Albania. In addition, HORSCH project form their own vocational school management - even if there were lan- employed some skilled workers at the class. This allows for supporting them in guage shortcomings. The differences are Schwandorf and Landau sites who mainly a much better way, they can focus on spe- not by far as huge as it is shown in the come from Syria. In their home countries cial topics and work on possible individ- media. They are people with the same they were trained for example as me- ual disadvantages. And there are subject- problems we have: They want a job they chanics, assemblers, welders or steel con- specific supplementary German and like and that feeds their family and they structors. maths lessons funded by the ministry of want a safe life. And that’s what it makes The apprentices are between 18 and education. The trainers of the participat- much easier for us.“ 21 years old. They all are unaccompanied ing companies keep close contact and Due to these positive experiences the adolescents and only some of them still exchange experiences. decision has already been made: In 2017, have relatives in their native country. The Every Saturday from 10 a.m. till 3 p.m. too, there will be additional apprentice- procedure for granting the right of asy- the young refugees get additional reme- ship employments for the refugees. The lum is still pending, their status is safe, dial lessons with the focus on maths and course has finally been set. but not yet acknowledged for good. They are allowed to do an apprentice- ship. Gerhard Springs and Anton Grauvogl are full of praise for the preparatory work of the “Haus des Guten Hirten”, a centre for vocational preparation and professional training supported by the Catholic Youth Welfare of the diocese Regensburg. It was defined already in February what apprentices would be on the short- list. But in the end all of the time until the start of the apprenticeship on September 1st was needed to create the necessary framework. Most of it consisted in com- municating with the authorities. They wanted to help, but had to react con- stantly to changing political require- The new apprentices 2016 of all sites at the Check-In Days with head of HR Gerhard Springs ments. It was often not clear what the (5.from the right) and the trainers Jens Keller (1.from the right), Christian Graf (1.from the left) current state of affairs really was. A and Manuela Richter (2.from the left).

39 terra Inside HORSCH Encourage and demand

integration The presidents of the Service Clubs (from left to right): Axel Jakobitz (Round Table), Michael Horsch (Rotary) and Dr. Reinhard Proske (Lions) as A project of Schwandorf’s service clubs well as the integration manager of the Lions Club Hüseyin Cakir (right).

In 2015 and 2016 a lot of refugees came to Germany – a fact we deal with every day, not only in the news. It already has become one of the big topics of our time and of our society. There is a lot of fear – of “foreign infiltration”, of “islamisation” – or perhaps even quite simply the concern that we might have to share our affluence.

chwandorf’s three service clubs Ro- Horsch (Rotary), agree: “Those who got The guests of the charity event were tary, Lions and Round Table under- a qualification in the form of training are informed in an informative and enter- stand this fear and concern and – the best development aid worker you can taining way about the idea and the back- like a lot of other people, too – image.” For, of course, the return to the ground. Afghanistan-expert Dr. Reinhard Swant to take care to provide especially respective home country is always an op- Erös and Dr. Dalal Makari-Pausch who young refugees with training and work. tion, too. had to leave her home country Syria This task, of course, is an enormous chal- To motivate and also to accompany talked about their personal experiences. lenge and first of all starts with integra- regional companies to train and employ And of course, the guests were informed tion which does not succeed automati- refugees, the three clubs are going to how they could support the initiative in cally, but needs determination, conscious employ an advisor – financed by dona- a practical way. The prominent support- decisions and then also concrete steps. tions. For three years to begin with this ers and participants of the discussion There are a lot of areas where people in- advisor is to support the companies with round were federal minister Emilia Mül- vest time and resources and are available regard to quite practical obstacles. He ler, district administrator Thomas Ebeling, to accompany and teach refugees, get provides a network to make sure that entrepreneurs Thomas Hanauer (emz) acquainted and become friends with newcomers can benefit from the experi- and Philipp Horsch (HORSCH Maschinen them and let them into their life. ences of other companies. And he is to GmbH) as well as Martin Liebl from the Education, training and employment keep contact to the juvenile refugees to Agency for Technical Relief (THW) that are central topics with regard to integra- be close enough to notice what is neces- commits itself intensively to the integra- tion. This is where Schwandorf’s service sary for the training to be successful. tion of refugees. The charity event in- clubs Rotary, Lions and Round Table The donation proceeds of the charity cluded a special dinner and the Eberhard come in. Their basic idea: “We want to do even that was organised by the three ser- Geyer Trio provided wonderful musical something. We want to find possible so- vice clubs in the HORSCH FITcentre on 26th entertainment. lutions and encourage and demand inte- of November 2016 are to contribute to the The interesting evening with about gration.“ The presidents of the three financing of this advisor. Moreover, the 260 guests was a huge success and the clubs, Axel Jakobitz (Round Table), Dr. intention was to motivate other regional donation-total amounted to almost Reinhard Proske (Lions) and Michael companies to train/employ refugees. 50,500 EUR.

The discussion round with district adminis- trator Thomas Ebeling, Thomas Hanauer With about 260 (emz), federal minister Emilia Müller, guests the charity moderator David Neufeld, Martin Liebl event was a huge (representative of the THW), Dr. Reinhard success. Erös and Philipp Horsch (from left to right).

40 FITZ training centre terra AGRIDAYS 2016 – a successful premiere!

The first HORSCH AGRIDAYS took place at different locations in France to pre- sent new ideas to the French farmers. More than 700 people accepted the in- vitation. They discussed various topics with the speakers. terraHORSCH sum- marises the event.

Michael Horsch described the future purchasing criteria of a large supermarket chain: GM-free and traceable without gap.

he introduction was made by have the feeling that corn prices are low. maxim of agriculture: Nature wants vari- Michael Horsch and the director But this is a subjective impression. If you ety. Now we have to bear the conse- of HORSCH France, Robert take the Matif prices (Matif = French fu- quences of these decisions. The fact that Dorsemagen. They talked about tures exchange) of the past eight years pests and weeds are resistant to a lot of Tthe big challenges farmers are facing to- into account, their average is lower than active agents is a typical example.“ Dur- day – challenges of an economic, agricul- the current price.“ ing his last trip in the North of Brazil Mi- tural, social and regulatory kind. Despite During his review of the situation Mi- chael Horsch noticed a change in the the bad harvests in France Michael chael Horsch pointed out mistakes that in behaviour of the local farmers in view of Horsch, however, is quite confident: “In his opintion have been made: “For many this problem: “About ten years ago GMO the current economic situation farmers years we have disregarded a simple plants where introduced in Brasil where

41 terra FITZ training centre

formerly mostly maize and soya were tensively, HORSCH invited experts and systems were created in the past years to grown as a monoculture. At that time the specialists to exchange experiences with improve efficiency in plant protection – farmers I met carried out two plant pro- participants. Theo Leeb, managing direc- among them air-supported booms, the tection passes. Today the sprayer goes tor of HORSCH LEEB Application Systems, introduction of cones on the nozzles to into the field more than 20 times a year!“ Jean-Luc Forrler, head of the soil conser- reduce losses caused by wind. Today, The farmers are now trying to further vation project at Vivescia, a co-operative these methods are used rarely or not at develop their farming method – espe- for agriculture and food for common all as the commercial success was only a cially by a limitation of monoculture and marketing and further processing of ag- minor one. Therefore, they did not pre- the return to line varieties instead of ricultural products, and Etienne de Saint- vail. GMO crops. Laumer, within the HORSCH Marketing To find really effective solutions, Theo Based on his experiences as a farmer responsible for tests in the sectors single Leeb decided to get to the root of the and his trips to all five continents he at grains and maize, talked about problem. The most important point is: least was able to point out approaches to approaches for the various challenges of Where do the losses come from? He ex- the French farmers. Michael Horsch em- tomorrow’s agriculture. plained: “With regard to application phasised: “We must not get on the wrong there are three important factors: drift, track and systematically only blame the Solution for the future requirements evaporation and missing the target.“ large distribution chains. Neither they in plant protection Tests were carried out in the wind tun- nor the producers decide what will be nel and Leeb was able to prove that the consumed and how it will be consumed. distance to the target area is essential for In the future, it will be the consumer who reducing the losses. “Small droplets are sets the trend – based on the power they ideal to apply a fungicide and to achieve have obtained by networking and espe- a good covering of the plant. But their cially via the social media. In the respect, life span is not more than five seconds – communication with the public plays a even with an air humidity of 70 per cent key role. We, the farmers, are responsible and a low outside temperature. Thus, it for the bad image of our profession. We is advantageous to spray as close to the have to talk to the consumers, explain target area as possible.“ The tests proved our methods and be open for a “trans- that when spraying with a 30-cm distance parent” traceability.“ to the target area the drift losses were This year his annual trip to the US took lowered by 40 per cent compared to Michael Horsch to Silicon Valley, right spraying with a distance of 50 cm to the into the heart of worldwide innovation: target area. “The workplaces over there are open. Due to this discovery the whole range Theo Leeb is the managing director of There are no dividing walls and there is a HORSCH LEEB Application Systems. The of HORSCH Leeb sprayers are equipped kitchen at the centre with round-the- HORSCH Leeb sprayers won multiple awards with an active control system for the clock service. I was very surprised to find and are the leading innovators in the sector boom: BoomControl. With this systems of application technology. no dishes we Europeans would typically the boom constantly remains at a dis- expect in America: hamburger, French tance of 30 cm above the plant – even in fries and tons of sweets full of sugar. hilly terrain and irrespective of the ap- There was only salads, fruits and tofu. The sheer mentioning of the word plication speed chosen. The people I met were athletic, far away plant protection provokes controversial In addition to the height of the boom, from the image we commonly have of a reactions. The social, political, economic the nozzles, too, play in important role North American people. They are behind and environmental requirements force us with regard to efficiency. Al lot of tests the latest developments in our society into more precision and efficiency when were carried out – mostly directly on and they want to change the world. Re- applying plant protection agents. Since farms to examine several crucial points: member that the smartphone has be- the mid-80s the chemical industry has not the distance between the individual noz- come an integral part of our life in less managed to find any new molecules for zles, spraying angle, size and impact than 400 weeks. This new generation the protection of the crops. And there is speed of the droplets as well as the type that non-stop produces innovations and nothing to suggest that this trend might of nozzles. The aim was to find the opti- whose ambition it is to create a healthier change. At the same time pests and mum combination to limit the effect of future for the young is about to revolu- weeds have become resistant to the ac- the “black holes” (areas that were not tionise the consumption habits of our tive agents. covered by the agent) and to increase the society. And we should not be afraid of To solve this problem the farmer has share of the covered surface. Theo Leeb it.“ to succeed in reducing the losses when explained: “On our test rig we tested sev- If we transfer this to agricultural applying plant protection agents while at eral nozzle combinations, especially an farms, precision in plant protection, sinle the same time improving the potential of arrangement of alternating single and grain technology or soil-saving farming the agents. double nozzles with a 25-cm spacing. The strategies could be the answers to the In addition to the further develop- first results showed that the coverage got change that our sector is facing at the ment of the treatment methods accord- better the closer the nozzles were to the moment. To discuss these topics more in- ing to the climatic conditions, a lot of target area. Increasing the number of

42 nozzles also brought about an improve- vert to soil-conserving farming. But how the biological life from one ton per hec- ment, but at the same time raised a ques- does that work? How can we put our tare to about twelve tons per hectare tion with regard to the minimum number farms on a solid basis despite climatic within some years.“ A possible rotation of nozzles, especially with a low quantity risks and the huge price fluctuations? in the first year of the conversion might of water. But what is more important? A Jean-Luc Forrler has dedicated 20 years of be: winter wheat with NoTill, winter bar- more highly concentrated spraying mix- his life to these questions. He explained: ley with NoTill if there is no brome prob- ture or to reach the target?” It definitely “To successfully convert to soil-conserving lem, beans with NoTill, rape with MinTill is the latter. farming, you first of all have to create a or even NoTill if the soil is shallow and soil that works and is full of organic ma- spring barley, spring wheat or peas with Soil-conserving farming – simple and terial. The influence of tillage has to be MinTill. efficient for everyone reduced, a full coverage of the soil has to Jean-Luc Forrler’s speech led to quite be guaranteed and you have to work on vivid discussions. This kind of conversion rotation. Depending on the soil, it takes is as much provoking as interesting. between three and eight years to find a Among the audience were farmers who system that works.“ have already converted their farm as- sisted by Forrler and who were able to Approach 1: Reduce tillage talk about their practical experiences. The farmer should do without plough and deep tillage – both is disadvanta- Single grain sowing for cereals – geous for the development of bacteria, precision for a new kind of population fungi and earthworms that are necessary management for the biological life of the soil. Tillage should be carried out as far away from the time of sowing as possible. A study made by Odette Ménard from Québec shows that biological life in a cultivated soil is estimated to be seven milliards of Jean-Luc Forrler, formerly farming consultant with the Chamber of Agricultural of the de- bacteria, fungi and earthworms per partment Moselle, now expert for soil-con- square meter. For ploughed soil the ratio serving farming at Vivescia. He accompanies only amounts to 1.4 milliards. the farmer during the implementation of the corresponding strategy. Approach 2: All-the-year coverage According to Jean-Luc Forrler farmers do not have any other choice: the soils For ten years wheat yields in France have to be covered constantly. Some have been stagnating and the protein rules have to observed. Regional and ratio has been declining. At the same adapted varieties have to be preferred. time farmers are required to reduce the Four different varieties should be used to Etienne de Saint-Laumer is a farmer’s son. He influence on the environment. “When it prevent one variety from dominating works in the HORSCH marketing department and is responsible for the single grains tests was about finding solutions for increas- and sowing should be carried out as soon with maize that are carried out in Germany ing the yields, at that time the chemical as possible. Ideally right after the harvest. and in France. industry came to the rescue of the farm- Sowing has to be carried out with the ers. This does no longer work today. The same care as for the main crop. “The end of the line has been reached and we plant cover much too often is only broad- have to become active ourselves,“ Jean casted. This way, it is impossible for the Within the HORSCH company Etienne Luc Forrler, head of the soil conservation plant to develop properly.“ de Saint Laumer is responsible for the project at Vivescia, states. The job of the plant cover is done af- tests in the single grains sector and has Forrler mentioned three key words ter the blossom time. At that time the already carried out several series of tests that are crucial to convert a farm towards ripening stage has started, the cover is in France and in Germany. His particular soil-conserving farming: soil, bio-diversity enriched with carbon and initiates focus was on the influence of the distri- and risk management. graining. bution quality of the grain in the furrow. “The soil is the basis for success. The He described the advantages of the sin- focus must be on it.“ And to make that Approach 3: Review rotation of the gle grain system: “With this system you work, organic material has to be pro- farm can make optimum use of the advan- duced! Jean-Luc Forrler reminded the To achieve an all-the-year coverage, tages of a homogenous plant develop- participants of a figure that often is mis- the farmer has to work on the rotation ment. The aeration of the plant cover judged: “With NoTill the biological life in to avoid a compaction of the soil. Jean- reduces the pressure and provides every the soil is almost six times as high as in Luc Forrler explained: “A well-thought- plant with an optimum access to light ploughed soil.” out rotation together with a complete and nutrients. Thus, the plants are In his opinion, the solution is to con- coverage of the soils allows for increasing stronger and more stable.“

43 terra FITZ training centre

Maize: Yield optimisation due to ad- In clayey soils, however, the coulter Maize: Influence of the closing wheels apted soil pressure: pressure of 300 kg rather increased soil on the vegetative development of the To analyse the agricultural advantages compactions and emergence was less plants: of this principle, tests were carried out on regular. These results confirm how impor- Parallel to the soil pressure test the the HORSCH-owned farm AgroVation in tant it is to adjust the pressure correctly influence of the closing wheels on the the Czech Republic and on French farms to adapt the seed drill to different soils vegetative development of the plants in the departments Loiret and Charente. and, thus, to achieve higher yields. was examined, too. When sowing maize The pressue on the seed elements has HORSCH is the only manufacturer of this device for closing the furrow really an effect on three factors: the regularity single grain seed drills in Europe that has has an enormous influence on the envi- of the placement depth, the compaction developed a corresponding system for its ronment in which the grains germinate of the soil and the quality when closing Maestro lines – and it can be operated in and then sprout. HORSCH developed the seed furrow. “In stony soils, with a the tractor cabin. “To facilitate this ad- three types of wheels: one with spikes, maximum pressure of 300 kg on the seed justment that allows for an exact adap- one with teeth and one with fingers. All element, the placement depth was very tion to the type of soil even further, is three versions were compared to analyse regular and the loss during emergence another factor that influences yield.“ their influence on different soils. Etienne was lower compared to the version with Since November 1st 2016 an automatic de Saint Laumer explained: „We carried a pressure of 125 kg – this is the case for adjustment of the soil pressure is avail- out tests on two different soils: clayey the majority of seed drills on the mar- able for the Maestro CC and SW: HORSCH and loamy. We noticed significant differ- ket,“ Etienne de Saint Laumer continues. AutoForce. ences between the different versions. On

HORSCH innovations and machines for tomorrow’s agriculture:

The new HORSCH seed drill was developed to satisfy the demand for alternative sowing possibilities. For the Avatar HORSCH reactivated the single disc principle. For NoTill the seed element has to be able to penetrate the soil in an optimum way, especially if there are a lot of harvest residues – this is particularly important when sowing catch crops and straw in summer. HORSCH meets these demand by using the single disc coulter and by a pressure of up to 350 kg per seed element.

44 There are a lot of equipment options for the Leeb LT. The active boom control system BoomControl was awarded a silver medal at the Agritechnica 2013 and guides the boom at a constant distance of 30 cm to the target area – even at a high operational speed. This influences drift reduction and the optimisation of the spraying process itself considerably.

The Pronto DC single grains is based on the Pronto DC and is a disc seed drill that combines the well-proven advantages of the Pronto DC with an excellent grain placement accuracy for rape and cereals. In the matter of distribution both machines are identical with regard to the meter- ing of the seed as far as the exit from the distribution head. As soon as the grain reaches the seed element, the characteristic feature of the Pronto DC single grain shows: the seed flow controller each seed element is equipped with and which is mounted as close to the soil as possible allows for placing the grains exactly in the furrow – at speeds up to twelve km/h.

45 terra FITZ training centre

clayey soils, due to the combination of 4 days of information and exhange cause: everyone is convinced that the the usual rubber wheels and finger After the speeches the farmers had professional profile of the farmer has to wheels, the secondary roots were able to the opportunity to review the informa- change to be able to cope with the new develop outside the furrow and thus get tion and new ideas during a joint lunch. challenges. more nutrients. In loamy soils, however, An Avatar 6 SD and a sprayer from the the version with the closing wheels made Leeb LT line were exhibited outdoors. In of rubber and with spikes prevailed.“ Samoussy, a Pronto DC with single grain Due to these results you can now ad- equipment was shown in addition. vice the farmer specifically which version The interest of the 700 guests at the is the right one for his respective condi- AGRIDAYS in the new and trend-setting tions. topics was enormous. And with good

The AGRIDAYS at a glance:

Day 1 – Thénac Day 2 – Villiers Charlemagne

Day 3 – Samoussy Day 4 – Fontaine Française

46 www.horsch.com

Leeb PT 280 INTELLIGENT SPRAYING TECHNOLOGY

—Maximum efficency with un-rivalled innovative BoomControl at 30cm above the crop —High capacity with 8,000 litre tank combined with low total machine weight —Mechanical axles linked to Hydro gearbox = maximum drive on hills —285hp engine that operates at 1,400 to 1,700 rpm and 50 km/h

Contact your local dealer to make an appointment for a demonstration!

Anz_TH13_PT280_Ersatzteile_Messerwalze_EN_rh_lay.indd 2 16.12.2016 08:52:30 HORSCH SPARE PARTS

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ORIGINAL SPARE PARTS YOU CAN RELY ON Only original spare and wear parts that can be purchased from your HORSCH dealer guarantee a maximum e ciency of your HORSCH machine. We gladly assist you in fi nding the correct parts and we will advise you on the site-speci- fi c use of your machine. We have exactly the right part for your requirements with an optimum price-performance ratio. Do not compromise – not even for spare and wear parts. For they signifi cantly add to the longevity of your HORSCH machine.

Anz_TH13_PT280_Ersatzteile_Messerwalze_EN_rh_lay.indd 1 16.12.2016 08:51:42