Making efficient use of raw materials is the order of the day for the Research and Development team and VanDrie Food & Feed Ingredients (FFI).  Hendriët Buwalda, procurement officer at FFI, and Wiebe Mulder, Head of R&D at VanDrie Group, look explicitly at the availability of raw materials grown or available in Europe when putting together feeds. Not least, these are residual waste flows or so-called ‘rest crops’ that find a valuable application in the VanDrie Group's feeds. Recently, Hendriët and Wiebe have been working as project managers to set up their own crop of the catch crop field beans.

''Field beans are a valuable raw material for our calf feeds. Their high protein content enables our calves to grow well'', explains Hendriët. But that is certainly not the only reason to choose field beans. “The crop is doing extremely well in the Netherlands, which is quite exceptional for protein-rich crops. It thrives on both clay and sandy soil, the latter being very important for us. We have recently begun talks with veal farmers who own some agricultural land themselves, to grow field beans on it on behalf of the VanDrie Group”, says Wiebe.

I regard the application of locally grown field beans to our feeds as a great step forward

Hendriët Buwalda

Hendriët sees several things coming together in this project: “In recent years, we have seen that the availability of raw materials is under pressure.” “In addition, on top of the 70% of raw materials that already come from residual waste flows or from European arable farming now, our aim is to increase the circularity of our feeds. I regard the application of locally grown field beans to our feeds as a great step forward”, says Hendriët. 

Still, Wiebe stresses that growing field beans does not fully meet the VanDrie Group's full protein demand. “For a healthy and complete feed package, we continue to depend on raw material suppliers. In addition, not every veal farmer has the land available or the possibility to grow field beans.”

Growing plant proteins is new to the VanDrie Group. That is why we are collaborating with Limagrain in this project, which is the market leader in breeding and marketing agricultural sowing seeds. Wiebe explains: “Limagrain will also provide cultivation support to veal farmers. In this way, we complement each other with knowledge.”

If you are a veal farmer interested in the possibilities of growing field beans, please contact your own regional manager.