Forgotten Points Of Vegetable Harvest Efficiency

With harvest finally over for most producers throughout Ontario, many farmers will reflect on how to improve on the results of last year.  These points are often over looked ways to improve harvest efficiency.  I have listed what my experience shows as the most overlooked, but still very important.

• Pre-Season Inspections- Ensure your equipment uptime is maximized, downtime is very costly during the short harvest season.
• Evenflows ensure a constant flow of product for not only graders at the storage, but also allow for faster offload from trucks.  Therefore reducing waiting time in field for trucks.
• Address “bottlenecks” within the harvest, transport, unloading, conveying, inspection, and pilling issues.
• Windrowing increases throughput, while modern technologies ensure reduced skinning and bruise rates.
• Create transportation plans, and provide communication between trucks, in case of traffic issues.

Although this is a small list, my experience tells me a large portion of delays or inefficiencies during harvest come from these 5 items.  Simple things like looking into were your process is at its most inefficient, and then addressing it.

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Paul Smith is the owner of Northern Equipment Solutions and based in Central Ontario, Canada. Providing Quality Potato Equipment, Precision Agriculture and Other Advanced Equipment, Northern Equipment Solutions ensures that your profits and yields are maximized. www.northernequipment.ca or sales@northernequipment.ca