Patrick Pohlmann of Münster has made a name for himself across Europe over the past two decades as a supplier of high-quality organic chive plants. However, changes in legislation surrounding water drainage made further expansion of the company at its old location on Mariendorfer Straße nearly impossible. With the move in 2022 and, above all, the installation of a modern water recycling system from VAM Watertech, the company is prepared for the future, says Pohlmann, who leads the family business for a third generation.
In the summer of 2022, an industry colleague recommended the company VAM Watertech to the master grower. "The system had already received very good references in the carrot and potato sectors at that time. I thought to myself: If it works for carrots, which are often delivered full of soil, it could also be a suitable solution for our products, which, in addition to chive pots, also include celeriac. We then decided relatively quickly to use the process. The deciding factor for us was the fact that VAM offered us not only a complete solution but also comprehensive advice around it."
The water treatment process works in three steps. First, the coarse parts are filtered out, followed by sand. For the third and final step, the cleaning system was equipped with a customized and more cost-effective alternative to the common sieve belt press. The results so far have been encouraging, Pohlmann reports. "We now only need a fraction of the previous water consumption, about five to ten percent. However, our main concern was not so much the reduction of water demand but the security of our production, which we have now also achieved."
Dirk Heitmann, the company's operations manager, agrees and adds: "An additional advantage is the compact design and small space requirement. It's also worth mentioning that the system is not continuously in operation but only runs when necessary, so the energy consumption is somewhat limited. Otherwise, the system can be expanded at any time."
From left to right: Dirk Heitmann (Operations Manager) and Patrick Pohlmann (Managing Director) of Gemüsebau Pohlmann and Robert Hoenderdos, Sales Manager for the DACH region at industry supplier VAM Watertech. Pohlmann's company has been located in the Hessenweg industrial area, north of the city of Münster, for about a year.
In winter, not only chives but also organic celeriac and pumpkins are washed, and the container filled with the filtered-out sludge has to be replaced every two to three weeks.
The water treatment plant filters the already used water and reintroduces it as almost clear water into the cycle.
After the chive plants are harvested in November, they are put in cold storage at -10 degrees Celsius. They are then defrosted as needed with water and potted. The organic seedlings are sold to large nurseries all over Europe.
The pots before and after the washing process. As a renowned chive supplier, Pohlmann produces and markets both Bioland and Naturland products (Bio-Anbau Patrick Pohlmann KG) as well as Demeter pots (Gemüsebau Pohlmann). Despite the decline in demand due to inflation last year, the demand for organic chives has skyrocketed in the last decade.
The new installation of the water recycling system is just one of several steps toward the sustainable design of the new location. The installation of a PV system is also planned.
Visit the VAM Watertech BV team at Fruit Logistica: Hall 4.1 / Stand D-12.
For more information:
Patrick Pohlmann
Bio-Anbau Patrick Pohlmann KG
Mariendorfer Str. 4 E
48155 Münster
Tel.: 0049 172 53 55 333
[email protected]
Robert Hoenderdos
VAM Watertech BV
Monsterweg 64, 4454 AC
Borssele, the Netherlands
Tel.: +31 (0)113 - 65 58 80
Email: [email protected]
www.vam-watertech.com