UK study tour impresses inaugural SPRAY Award winner

As state judging wraps up for the second annual Syngenta SPRAY Awards, last year’s overall winner, Darren Schreurs, has just returned from the $15,000 UK study tour that was his prize.

Darren farms 160 hectares at Devon Meadows, 50 kilometres outside Melbourne, with his brothers, Mark and Paul, and father, Peter. His farm exports around three tonnes of leeks and produces a further 40 tonnes of leeks for the local market per week and also produces five million cos lettuces a year, along with salad crops including radicchio, endive, kohl rabi and baby wombok.

He was named Australia’s first Sustainable, Productive, Responsible Applicator of the Year (SPRAY) after impressing the judging panel with his application techniques, record keeping and storage practices. The SPRAY Awards are an opportunity to recognise the many thousands of Australian growers who are making sustainable and responsible use of crop protection products to enhance the productivity of their farms. Darren was chosen from a pool of 120 round one entries, 15 state finalists and five state winners.

His study tour prize allowed Darren and his wife Anne-Maree to spend two weeks in the UK. Hosted by the Manager of Syngenta’s Spray Application Group, Garth Wickson, they visited Allpress Farms, one of the UK’s leading leek producers and Marshalls Produce, the UK’s biggest vegetable supplier. They also had the opportunity to visit Hypro, the factory that developed the Syngenta range of nozzles that are designed to increase coverage and reduce spray drift. They spent a day at Jealott's Hill – Syngenta's largest site for agrochemical R&D and home to the biggest glasshouse research complex in Europe.

"The study tour has been an amazing experience," said Darren. "It's always fascinating to see what other people are doing, learn from their experiences and see if there are any ideas we can take back. This trip was a great opportunity to reinforce the importance of the safety procedures we follow. I was particularly impressed with Rob Cannell’s commitment to safety as he sets a great example for all farmers.

“To be recognised by Syngenta with the SPRAY Award felt like a real pat on the back for me personally – a reassurance that I am on the right track with my spraying. There’s always more to learn but if I can be a role model to other sprayers, then that would be a great thing.”

Darren is also pleased that the SPRAY Award will help reinforce his family farm’s good business reputation.

“The reputation of spraying in general can be ruined by one or two rogue sprayers out there who don’t do the right thing,” he said. “Being able to display this award on our website and business materials shows customers and business partners that we take our responsibilities very seriously. Hopefully that will translate to increased sales.”

Rob Cannell was the winner of the Syngenta Farm Sprayer Operator of the Year award in the UK. He undertakes all the spraying across the 3500 hectare Dennington Hall Farms near Suffolk, along with other contract-farmed land totaling over 10,000 spraying hectares a year.

Darren says he was especially impressed by the container rinsing system Rob built using an old cattle footbath. It involves a series of water pipes and upright spray nozzles, where empty cans can be placed over the nozzles and left to rinse and drain whilst Rob is out spraying; with an auto-timer designed for garden watering systems managing the rinse time. All the rinsing water is collected in a tank and can be sucked into the sprayer with the next load going out into the field.

Another top operator tip that impressed Darren was the fact that Rob keeps all necessary tools on his rig. For example, fixing two spring hose clips by the sprayer induction hopper, with one holding a knife ready to hand for opening can seals, while the other holds a waterproof black marker pen to write on part-used cans when the product was used and how much is remaining.

As well as spending time with Rob, Darren visited a number of growers including Marshalls of Butterwick in Lincolnshire. The company manages brassica crop production across more than 4,600 hectares a year. Marshalls started as a family farming business but is now part of the Produce World group, and is Europe’s largest brassica grower and the primary supplier for one of the leading UK supermarket chain. Marshalls undertake extensive trials work with Syngenta seeds company, S&G, to develop new brassica varieties.

Another trip highlight for Darren was being able to see firsthand the cutting edge technology in use at Syngenta’s Jealott’s Hill R&D station, including a new formulation robot that is unique in agrochemical development. The fully automated robot will formulate and test hundreds of potential turf, amenity and crop protection products every day, at speeds that scientists can only dream of with existing technology. The system will help Syngenta scientists to be more innovative and productive than ever before when creating new products.

The SPRAY Award winner for 2010 will be announced at AgQuip in Gunnedah in August.

Syngenta is one of the world's leading companies with more than 24,000 employees in over 90 countries dedicated to the purpose of Bringing plant potential to life. Through world-class science, global reach and commitment to customers, Syngenta helps to increase crop productivity, protect the environment and improve health and quality of life. For more information visit www.syngenta.com.au.