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REDUCING INPUTS
The Jersey Royal Company is at the forefront of advancements in growing techniques to minimise the amount of fertiliser and pesticide inputs that are applied to the growing crop. Reverting back to many traditional techniques and utilising the latest advancements in predictive models and application techniques we have reduced the number and quantities of inputs used year on year.
These initiatives have meant that the land can be rested and “green manure” crops are ploughed back into the soil allowing the fertility of the land to build up. As a consequence we are able to use lower levels of organic fertiliser. By using specific green manures we are able to reduce levels of some pests and diseases too without the need to intervene with pesticides.
We also fertilise our fields using vraic, the local name for seaweed that is washed up on the Islands beaches during winter storms. The vraic is removed using tractors and trailers and tipped on the field where it is still spread by hand.
We ensure that any pesticides that we use on the crop are only applied when absolutely necessary and that more traditional and cultural controls are used where possible. When pesticides are used we only apply them when a specific threshold is exceeded whereby economic damage to the crop may result if the fields are left untreated and then the least environmentally harmful pesticides are applied.
In many cases new technologies are employed to determine the need for pesticides. For instance the Company has four infield weather stations that monitor the weather conditions across the Island. This information is updated twice daily, seven days a week and has led to a reduction in blight pesticides used over the past five years.
All staff are fully trained and use the latest equipment which is regularly maintained and inspected. All sprayer operators are members of the National Register of Spray Operators and the technical team are trained agronomists being both FACTS (Fertiliser Advisors Certificate Training Scheme) and BASIS (British Agrochemical Standards Inspection Scheme) qualified.
Applications of inputs and control of harvesting is maintained under central control with regular meetings between key staff responsible for each area of production. Fully detailed records are kept on a single integrated computer programme that allows full traceability of produce from field to plate.
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