If you travel the roads of Ireland, you could be forgiven for thinking that HARTE PEAT lorries seem to be everywhere!
That’s because they are!
Having recently launched a new bulk peat delivery service and invested in new trucks and trailers, Harte Peat are clocking up the kilometres, supplying top quality mushroom casing to growers throughout Ireland. Harte Peat’s new trailers are all fitted out with a delivery conveyor that plugs in to the growers filling machine (single or double machine) and delivers the peat as it is required. In fact, such is the success of this system, which was developed by Harte Peat’s engineering division, that they have patented the system and actually have had enquires from other peat suppliers both at home and abroad.
Tommy O’Harte, Managing Director of Harte Peat picks up the story – “Harte Peat have been in business for over 21 years supplying mushroom growers throughout Ireland, and beyond, with mushroom casing, and we are continually adapting to meet our market demands.
First it was bulk peat tipped on the grower’s yard, then it was bags, and now it seems to have come full circle to bulk peat again. But instead of 7 m³ loads it’s 37 m³ loads! We saw a demand for a bulk peat delivery system that was simple, reliable but also cost effective.
We already had the trailers, we just needed to get the peat from the trailer in to the growing room.” With that in mind, Harte Peat developed and engineered a remarkably simple system, employing a cross conveyor, with chain and scrapers at a low speed, to gently feed the mushroom casing onto the growers filling belt.
Tommy continues, “In the mushroom casing business, you are only as good as your last delivery, so consistency of our product is everything. We have worked closely with some growers to get this right and the feedback has been very positive”.
In fact, word on “the mushroom street” is that when it comes to casing there is only one question to be answered - "Why didn’t they think of this before!"
6/15/2009 7:07:32 PM This system would seem to depend on the lorry turning up at an appointed time, rather like a Wedding car and I know what madonas some growers be.There seems little chance of a "back load" to maintain haulage efficiency so the rig only suits short haul deliveries similar in principal to tractor hauling compost trailers in Holland.
It's horses for courses of course.
But with a view to reducing delivery costs, how about a reusable bulk bag with the name of the mushroom farm on it so that there would be little risk of contamination spreading between farms.
The bulk bag offers unrivaled flexibility for the haulier and the grower with regards actual delivery times but something needs to be done to reduce costs. In our own case(pardon the pun) we rely on the bulk bag to allow excess moisture to drain from the deep dug peat, about 13 gallons over 7 days, after such time little else comes out of the bag. This means we do not have to play about adding surface milled peat to get the right consistency and moisture content in the bag, resulting in a clean, consistent, cost effective casing.
Brian Macgregor Bogbain.com Brian MacGregor, Inverness
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