Since recent years AdVisie has been introducing a new picking concept which has acquired the name ‘graze picking. The aim of this method is to maintain or create a good spread of fruits by altering the picking strategy.
Growers can influence the spread and quality of the mushrooms, but when harvesting starts, this influence lost for the most part as the picking behaviour takes over as the main influence in the growing room. The way they harvest is from that moment the determining factor for quality and yield. Research has shown that certain pickers harvest many more good quality kilos per m² than others do. The quality of the harvested product also varies per picker. This is usually immediately evident as soon as the mushrooms exit the growing room without even consulting the picking number. By introducing this method of harvesting several times a day, the grower can regain the degree of influence during harvesting.
The pickers contribute by creating and maintaining the right climate by only removing the mushrooms the grower wants picked. Pickers must here consider what they are aiming to pick tomorrow and not concentrate too heavily on todays performance. The end result once the system is familiar is an increase in production of around 2 kilos per m² and a quality improvement of 5%.
Henk van Gerwen, AdVisie ‘The mushroom cultivation advisors’
