Agriment International BV

10 September 2008, the Minister of Foreign Aid, Mr. Bert Koenders announced that the PSOM program, as far it was financed via his Ministry (PSOM-OS), will be continued as PSI (Private Sector Investment program). The Minister announced, that he very much favoured the PSOM program because it has proven to be very successful. Extending cooperation with the private business sector is also regarded as important in order to stimulate economic development and to combat poverty.

The total annual budget that will be available for PSI will therefore be increased compared with the former PSOM-OS budget, with € 15 million to 70 million.

The PSI program is expected to open by the end of 2008.

The program is not expected to differ much from the former PSOM-OS program. The list with eligible countries for PSI is more or less the same as the list for the last PSOM tender as far as the PSOM-OS program. Notable changes are following:

China and Sri Lanka will be excluded for the PSI program starting with the first tender;
Equator and El Salvador will participate only in the 1st PSI tender and will be excluded afterwards;
Honduras will participate in the first 2 tenders and will be excluded afterwards;
Brazil (North East) and Namibia will participate in the first 4 tenders (2 years) and will be excluded afterwards.

Another important change might be that, for a some countries (Least Developed Countries), the applicant does not need to be a Dutch company. The applicant can originate from any country.

For the countries for which the former PSOM-EZ applied (Russia, Ukraine, Serbia, Montenegro and Turkey) the situation is not clear at this moment. It is expected that for the short term a new program with limited financial support (indicative maximum budget € 200.000) will be launched.

For the long term, the Ministry of Economic Affairs is investigating the possibilities to introduce a new program with possibly the same characteristics as the former PSOM-EZ program. However news is not expected in 2008.

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Agriment starts up the project “Conventional IQF red fruit” with the company SonderJansen in Serbia

In Southern Serbia, the company SonderJansen from Oss, will establish an IQF freezing factory for soft fruit with is local partner "Dux" from Leskovac. Agriment developed the project and formulated the project proposal together with SonderJansen. The project proposal and business plan were awarded with a PSOM contract in July. Agriment will assist the company SonderJansen in implementing the project. The pilot phase will run until June 2010, after which additional investments in production capacity are foreseen.

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August 2008

Open days potato growers Constanta and Iasi (Romania)

HZPC potato varieties have performed very well in the trial field in Iasi as well as in Constanta this year. During the open days organised in July (Constanta) and August (Iasi) some 100 people visited the fields to see the results of several potato varieties. The local press published several articles.

The potatoes will be packed and marketed to different supermarket chains in Romania.

Trial field Vivaldi

Farmers visiting open days

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July 2008

PSOM-tenders withdrawn

The tender for the Program for cooperation with Emerging Markets (PSOM) with closing date 19 August 2008 has been withdrawn due to a dispute about the legal framework of the program. The Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the main funders for the PSOM program, are now evaluating the new situation. The expectation is that more news about the PSOM programs or possibly successors, will become available in the course of September and October.

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June 2008:

Producer Organisations for vegetables and herbs established in Bulgaria

Within the frame of a PSOM project, a supportive consulting company was established in the city of Plovdiv last year. This company, by the name of ANC, is active in advising on chain management, food safety, PO establishment and chain communication. It also sends its subscribers an electronic newsletter on a daily basis (www.agronetconsult.com).

This spring, two Producer Organisations (PO’s) have been established;

DAMAR consists of 7 members near the town of Kardzhali in south eastern Bulgaria. Jointly they grow 45 hectares of paprika and 43 hectares of fruit. The Paprika’s are all sold to a processing factory in Kardzhali where the seeds are removed and the fruit is roasted and then sterilised and put in jars. Jointly, the farmers can adapt their crop- and harvest planning to the capacity of the processing facility. Also much of the fruit is processed by the same processing facility.

Trakiyska Bilka is a PO that consists of 9 herb growers in the town of Katunitsa, not far from Plovdiv. Jointly they grow 53 hectares of herbs as well as 36 hectares of vegetables. The herb crops concern peppermint and melissa mostly.

The Dutch company VNK plans to purchase substantial amounts of the herbs and may process them in their modern Bulgarian facilities in Debnovo.

Fried Paprika in jars

Mint field in Katunitsa

Training herbs growers on:

PO establishment
Cost price calculations
Food safety
Quality
GAP

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April 2008:

Successful potato and onion harvest in the Gambia

In the Gambia a PSOM project yielded its first harvest of onions and potatoes. Approximately 50 hectares of both were grown during the winter season under a central pivot irrigation system. A Dutch farm manager is in charge of the operations and oversees a team of Gambian and Egyptian workers, tractor drivers and foremen.

The yields of both onion and potato were good to very good for several varieties that were tested. The products were stored in forced air cold stores. During the summer months the produce will gradually be, bagged and sold on the Gambia market as well as exported to neighbouring Guinea an Sierra Leone.

Semi automatic harvest

Good performing varieties

Handling in storage after harvest

Carrots and sunflower are new crops for Gambia and are also being grown in rotation. During the summer months, the fields are protected from erosion, caused by heavy rains, by a crop of maize.

New technology in Gambia: carrots in ridges

New crops in Gambia: Sunflower

July 2007

TPC successful in Burkina Faso

The Potato Company (TPC) finalised successfully the PSOM project during the summer of 2007. The production target of 24 tons of potatoes per hectare was surpassed in spring this year and 4 cold stores in Ouagadougou were full with potatoes. Now that the potatoes have been sold during the summer months and the stores are empty, the pilot phase of the project is completed. The project has been very helpful because it made it possible for the partners to supply good equipment and technical assistance. Without this, the problems would have been to big to overcome. Now the partners are confidence and continue potato production.

The new planting season will start in October already and preparations are under way by TPC in Emmeloord and its local joint venture partner DFS from Ouagadougou, to start the new season. Land is rented again in a n irrigation scheme along the Sourou river near the border with Mali. Seed potatoes are being shipped, fertiliser is ordered etc. Everything must be ready to prepare the fields for planting by the end of October, 2 weeks earlier than last year. Also the furrow irrigation of last year will be replaced by sprinklers.

With these 2 adjustments and because 2 local farm managers have been trained during the potato season in the Netherlands, expectations for a even better harvest this season are high.

The strategy is, to first consolidate the knowledge that has been obtained and after that, to extend the area of potatoes under cultivation.

The whole process of this project has been filed, from the phase of project development via shipment of hardware and production and harvest of potatoes.

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January 2007

Agriment starts up the project "Retail fresh potatoes in Romania" with HZPC

In September 2006 a consortium of companies, including Agriment, HZPC from Joure and APH from Joure, were rewarded by the EVD to implement a project titled "Retail fresh potatoes in Romania". The project was developed together with the potato producer Astra in Iasi, producer organisation APLCC in Constanta and gfa-ro in Bucharest.

Astra and APLCC will cooperate, as independent chain partners, in production and marketing of table potatoes. The potatoes will be HZPC varieties, that will be grown and marketed according to the clients’ wishes with regard to consumer use, time of supply, packing etc.

Food safety is another focus of the project. Both, Astra and APLCC will implement EurepGap and HACCP. Gfa-ro and Agriment will establish an expertise centre, that will offer, Romania wide, EurepGap and HACCP implementation, as well as advise on the establishment of EU recognisable Producer Organisations. The consultants will receive training from experienced Dutch trainers.

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Macedonia; Expertise centre for food quality and -safety is successful

In the beginning of 2005 a project was started up, with the aim to establish an expertise centre for food quality and food safety for farmers and companies in the Agri- and food sectors in Macedonia. In December 2006 the project was successfully finalised by Agriment. Within the expertise centre, Agriprexo, eight consultants have successfully passed their intensive training program and have obtained a certificate.

Since the start of the project, over 20 companies have implemented a food safety scheme (HACCP, EurepGap or ISO 22000) with the support of Agriprexo. These companies have been officially certified by INCEBO, an internationally recognised certification body. Several other companies are in the process of implementing quality- and food safety schemes, as Agriprexo continues its activities on a fully commercial basis from now.

In case you are interested, please contact us or Mrs. Irena Krsteva
Visiting address:     Aleksandar Makedonski bb, 1000 Skopje
Tel:                             +389 (0)2/321 52 35
Mobile:                       +389 (0)70/322 043

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November 2006

Agriment rewarded for implementing chain projects for herbs and vegetables in Bulgaria

In October 2006 Agriment and TLC were rewarded by the EVD to implement a chain project for herbs and vegetables in Bulgaria. The project starts on 1 November 2006 and will be finalised in 2008. The project aims at the increase of certified herbs and vegetables supplied to the Dutch and Bulgarian companies in the herbs and vegetable sectors. Within the project Producers Organisations (PO) will be established. In principle two EU-recognised Producer Organisation will be established, one fore herbs in the Lovech area and one for vegetables in the Haskovo area. A Supply Chain Service Centre (SCSC) will be established by Agriment and TLC, that will cooperate with existing consultants in the field of food safety, primary production and PO formation. Additionally this centre initiate activities to increase the co-operation between Dutch and Bulgarian companies active in the herb and vegetable sectors.

The project will be carried out in joint co-operation between Agriment and TLC (Mr. Tjapko Jager) and VNK in Biddinghuizen. Counterpart will be the extension service NAAS.

Furthermore representatives of the The Ministry of Agriculture will be trained in EU-regulations regarding the recognition of PO’s. For this the consortium has subcontracted VRIAN projects in Deventer.

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Bejo Project: "Production and Marketing Onion-sets in Russia" successful

In January 2005 Bejo started up the project "Production and Marketing of Onion-sets in Russia". For this a joint venture, "Lukamore", between Bejo and ZAO Ozery, part of the Malino Group in Ozery was established.

Besides the delivery of modern field equipment, storing and drying facilities were installed. Within the project 12 ha of onion-sets were grown in 2005 and 17 ha of onion-sets were grown in 2006. Besides this the employees of the joint venture were trained by experts of Bejo Zaden and NAK-T. The internal quality system of Bejo Zaden, "Quality Inside", is implemented.

Due to delay in the import of the storage equipment, the storage was finalised not earlier than in summer 2006. The first yield from 2005 has been stored in existing storage buildings, under improvised circumstances.

On the 14th of November 2006, during a festivity, the storage and handling area was opened and the results of the project were presented. The festive opening was attended by Mr. Martin Verheul, the agricultural attachº of the Dutch Embassy, Ms. Irina Titova representing the EVD, Mr. Sergei Lupechin, Director of the Malino Group, Sergei Priamov, Director of Lukamore, Mr. Siem Beers and Mr. Jan Langerak of Bejo Zaden BV and Mr. Henk Briedé of Agriment.

Onion sets; good harvest from point of view of yield and quality

The partners were complemented with the results of the project. The average attained yield has been 35 tons per ha, somewhat higher than the average level in the Netherlands. Sales of the yield of 2005 in the beginning of 2006 went very well. The demand for onion-sets for this season is even higher than expected and therefore the forecast for sales and turnover will be reached easily. The quality is according Dutch standards. The project period is extended until April 2007, to be able to benefit from expected increase of market prices.

During the festivity, Mr. Siem Beers of Bejo presented officially the QI-certificate to the Director of Lukamore, Mr. Sergei Priamov.

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October 2006

Minister Agnes Van Ardenne visits TPC

On the 25th of October, Minister Agnes van Ardenne visited The Potato Company (TPC) in Emmeloord. TPC started a PSOM project in Burkina Faso in the beginning of 2006. This project was developed by Agriment in collaboration with TPC, Agricultural Production and Handling (APH) and the local partner DFS in Ougadougou.

Mr. Gaby Stet informed Minister Van Ardenne about the history of the project. TPC has been supplying the Burkina company DFS with table potatoes for several years. They like and trust each other and decided that it would suit both companies’ strategy to jointly take up the production of table potatoes locally. In theory, this is well possible. However, in practice there is no experience with modern cultivation techniques for potatoes and therefore risks are considerable.

In the beginning of 2006, TPC and DFS started a Joint Venture for the cultivation and storage of potatoes in Burkina, APH supplied the necessary equipment, TPC supplied the seed potatoes and Agriment takes care of project management/coordination and business planning.

Minister Agnes van Ardenne and Mr. Gaby Stett

exchanging experiences working in emerging markets

Burkina Faso is a Sahelean country, in west Africa. The landscape varies from wooded savannah in the south-west to semi desert in the north-east. The dry season runs from October to May. Potatoes are eaten and also grown (November to January), However, there are no storage facilities and during 10 months per year, potatoes are being imported (from western Europe)
The first problems we ran into was the fact that the land had not been used for 24 years. While ploughing, the sub soil was very hard and small trees had established roots that damaged the plough. Many repairs had to be made in order to be able to finish the work. In the Sourou region, 15 years ago, an irrigation project was realised. To a limited extend this area is being used by the local population for growing maize and sorghum. Part of the land has also lain fallow during the past 14 years.

Seed potatoes supplied by TPC; ready for planting.

In this irrigated area, 50 hectares were rented for the cultivation of potatoes. Equipment for soil preparation, planting, crop protection and harvesting was supplied, along with fertilisers and seed potatoes. Also cooling- and handling equipment for storage were supplied. Joris Koenraadt, a Dutch farmer’s, son agreed to live in Burkina for 6 months in order to assist the local team with all day-to-day work and decisions and transfer knowledge at the same time. During the month of October, the land was ploughed and harrowed. In November the potatoes were planted. Until so far the project goes according plan.

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December 2005

Kick-of meeting Potato Chain project in Burkina Faso

In December 2005, a contract for a new PSOM project was awarded by the EVD. Agriment International has been closely involved in the preparation and development of the project proposal.

The project will be implemented in Burkina Faso and aims to introduce new cultivation techniques for potatoes, as well as to establish cool store facilities. Potato production is planned in the village of Niassan in the province of Sourou, some 260 km Northwest of Ouagadougou. The storage and packing facility will be realised in Ouagadougou. Partners in this PSOM project are: The Potato Company BV in Emmeloord and DFS S.A. in Ouagadougou. Project equipment will be delivered via Agricultural Production & Handling B.V. in Joure. The project starts as per 1 January 2006 and will be finalised by March 2008.

Kick off meeting of the project in the office of Agriment International BV

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October 2005

Festive opening cheese plant in Moldova

During the final week of October 2005, a new cheese plant was opened in Logoftin, Moldova. The cheese production unit had been realised in the framework of a PSO-project managed and co-ordinated by Agriment International.

Logoftin is situated some 150 km northwest of Chisinau, Moldova’s capital city. Investment partners in the project are the Dutch company Van den Heuvel Dairy & Food Equipment BV, producer and worldwide supplier of equipment for the dairy sector, and Logofat Prim, a Moldovan dairy company established in Logoftin. Both companies are shareholder in a new Joint Venture, named Heuvelland, which will be responsible for the production and marketing of the cheese.

The project started over two years ago, and has finally resulted in the construction of a new building and the installation of a complete line for the production of Gouda cheese. The cheese is produced according to original Dutch recipe. Several representatives from the Dutch and Moldovan government attended the festive opening ceremony, among which the Moldovan Vice-Minister of Agriculture and the Dutch Agricultural Counsellor of the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Kiev, Ukraine. By cutting a cheese by both Joint-Venture partners, the cheese plant was declared operational.

Cutting the cheese by Govert van den Heuvel (l.) and Vasile Cires, shareholders in Heuvelland.

As part of the PSO-project, not only a modern cheese production line has been realised in Logoftin, but also a climatised cheese storage as well as an own laboratory facility. Because of this, the cheese produced by Heuvelland meets the strictest quality and hygiene standards and is comparable to Gouda cheese produced in the Netherlands. It is expected that during the coming year, 80 tons of Gouda cheese will be marketed under own Heuvelland-label. Moreover, there seem to be good export possibilities to the Russian Federation.

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January 2005

Agriment establishes Agriprexo in Macedonia

In December 2004, Agriment and its partner Agrimaco were rewarded by the EVD to establish, within the framework of the PSOM - programmatic program , an expertise centre for food quality and food safety . In 2004 a Certification body (INCEBO) had been established. Farmers and companies in the Agri -en food sectors are in need of an expertise centre, that provides advices and support in implementing food safety and -quality schemes (HACCOP. EurepGap and ISO 22000).

The expertise centre will be established according the concept of "network organisation". The network organisation will consist of a office manager and a network of cooperating, already existing private consultants and consulting companies. The Centre, named Agriprexo, provides the cooperating consultants with training, including joint implementation in practice, and functions as an acquisition office at the same time. This way, running costs are low, practical knowledge is transferred and companies looking for a consultant to assist them implementing a food safety scheme, can have confidence in the quality of the work that will be supplied.

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