Belgian Potato Sector Develops a New Platform to Increase Production

The Belgian potato sector federation Belgapom is partnering with research institutions to develop a platform to increase the efficiency of potato production.

The platform, named iPot, which is short for “industrial potato monitoring”, combines data assembled via drones in the air and satellites in space.

Belgium is the biggest exporter of frozen potato products in the world, says Belgapom, and the availability of a sufficient crop is, therefore, crucial. Production isn’t at full capacity, mentioned Belgapom in a statement. The new geo-informatics platform should help to change this by integrating weather data, soil maps, growth models, field observations, aerial photos and satellite images.

iPot should enable a more efficient monitoring of the potatoes in the field, including growth, quality risks and expected yield throughout the season.

The platform is a pilot project of three years, a collaboration between Belgapom, the Flemish Institute for Technical Research (Vito), the University of Liège and the Centre Wallon de Recherches Agronomiques (CRA-W). The Belgian Science Policy Office (Belspo) supports the project financially.