Ask Michel de Bruin for a standard recipe for developing a potato sector and he is unlikely to give you one. As Development Manager at Agrico, Michel works in markets that differ widely in their production systems, regulation, commercial structures and stage of development. What works in Kenya may not work in Nigeria, and an approach that works today may need to change as a market develops.

That practical view runs through the way Michel talks about Agrico’s role in seed potato sector development. High-quality planting material matters, but it is only the starting point. Farmers also need knowledge, markets, other inputs and, depending on the context, access to finance and technology. Companies need workable regulations and a viable market. Development programmes need enough flexibility to adapt when circumstances change.

For Michel, strengthening a potato sector therefore means looking beyond the seed itself and understanding how the different parts of the system fit together.

Starting with strong planting material

Agrico is a Dutch cooperative of potato growers that develops, and markets potato varieties and produces seed potatoes. Its portfolio serves different segments, including retail, French fries, crisps and starch, and the company is active through its international network in more than 80 countries - with its genetics being present in many more. As Michel puts it himself: “The only place where Agrico varieties aren’t grown are the North and South pole.”

Being at the start of that value chain gives Agrico the opportunity to have a strong impact on what happens downstream of it. Better genetics and healthy planting material can improve productivity substantially, but Michel is careful about claiming control over the final result. Once a farmer buys seed potatoes, many other factors determine what happens next: how the crop is grown, which inputs are available, weather conditions, access to markets and the price ultimately received.

That distinction becomes particularly important in markets where large parts of the potato sector remain informal. A seed company can provide one important piece of the puzzle, but it cannot determine a farmer’s income or steer an entire food system on its own.

Agrico’s response is to work increasingly from a value-chain perspective. Better planting material is accompanied by knowledge transfer and, where possible, connections to the other elements farmers need to make productive use of it.

Agrico Potato Services Africa in Kenya provides a concrete example. The company produces certified seed potatoes in Nakuru County and combines this with farmer training on crop management and profitable potato production. It reflects what Michel describes as a “local for local” approach: building potato production for local and regional markets rather than seeing emerging markets simply as destinations for exports from the Netherlands.

Growing the market for quality seed

In many of the countries Michel works in, the formal market for certified seed potatoes is still relatively small. This changes the nature of competition.

From Agrico’s commercial perspective, Michel puts it memorably: “Our biggest competitor is farm-saved seed.” His point is that Agrico is often not primarily competing with another international seed potato company for an established customer base. It is operating in markets where farmers predominantly rely on seed retained from previous harvests and where the use of certified and qualitative planting material remains limited.

That means the bigger task is to expand the part of the market in which farmers see sufficient value in quality planting material to invest in it. Rather than focusing only on dividing the existing market between companies, Michel sees a shared sectoral interest in making that market larger for everyone.

The economics are central to his argument. Reusing planting material may appear inexpensive, but Michel argues that the calculation looks different when low productivity, labour, and other production costs are taken into account. If better planting material, appropriate varieties, and stronger crop management increase yields, the production cost per kilogram can fall and farmers have more room to invest in their businesses.

He uses a deliberately simple example: moving from six tonnes per hectare to 36 tonnes changes how much land, water and other resources are needed to produce the same volume of potatoes. In Agrico’s view, this is where financial and environmental sustainability can reinforce one another. Greater productivity can improve the business case while using available resources more efficiently.

But quality seed alone cannot produce that result. It requires a functioning chain around it, which is why Agrico frequently works with other private companies, governments and public organisations, including parties that may also be commercial competitors.

Production, markets and the enabling environment

Michel describes seed potato sector development through three interconnected elements: production, the market and the enabling environment.

Production includes varieties, seed quality, multiplication and cultivation knowledge. It is often the most visible part of a programme, but Michel argues that the other two elements can prove even more difficult.

A market needs demand, distribution and a viable business case for farmers and other actors in the chain. The enabling environment includes issues such as import rules, certification, plant breeders’ rights and other regulations that determine which varieties and production systems can operate.

Agrico sees its own role mainly in practical market development and implementation. The company can introduce varieties, make quality planting material available, share production knowledge and work with local partners to build its presence. It can also bring practical experience into earlier strategic discussions about what is likely to work, where the risks lie and whether an intervention can function beyond a pilot.

Michel considers that reality check important. A technical solution can perform well under controlled conditions but still be difficult to distribute, finance or operate at scale. Likewise, a well-intentioned policy decision can have consequences for farmers and private investment that were not apparent when it was designed.

Flexibility rather than a blueprint

There is another reason Michel is wary of fixed solutions: the markets themselves keep changing. The needs of a potato sector evolve as production, knowledge and commercial structures develop. A problem that was central ten years ago may have been addressed, while a new bottleneck has emerged. Political and economic changes can alter the operating environment quickly, and climate change adds further uncertainty for an open-field crop that is directly exposed to changing rainfall, heat and other weather conditions.

Michel describes many of these markets as volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous. His response is straightforward: “The only way to respond to volatility is flexibility.”

That flexibility is needed from companies, but Michel believes it should also be reflected in partnerships and development programmes. An approach may need to change as circumstances change. Programmes designed too rigidly can struggle when the reality on the ground develops faster than their planning cycles.

This is also why Michel resists general prescriptions about what is needed alongside quality seed potatoes. There are broad similarities between countries, but the practical solution is always shaped by local conditions. Sector development, in his view, is fundamentally a matter of tailoring and adapting rather than rolling out a single model.

Bringing perspectives together through SeedNL

Agrico’s interest in SeedNL follows naturally from that systems perspective. The company had already worked with the Dutch government and other partners in international markets, but saw a need for a place where private-sector experience, public ambitions and wider seed-sector expertise could be brought together more systematically.

SeedNL offered an existing platform, while also connecting the potato sector more closely with the Dutch vegetable seed sector. The crops and business models differ, but Michel sees considerable overlap in the challenges they encounter. Questions around quality systems, regulation, variety introduction, market development and access to good planting material often run in parallel.

For Agrico, the value lies in what Michel calls “channeling” different perspectives. Bringing companies, government and other organisations into the discussion can create synergies, but it can also help identify unintended consequences before decisions are taken. Private companies bring commercial and implementation experience, while public organisations and other partners bring expertise and influence in areas that individual companies cannot address alone.

This is particularly relevant around the enabling environment, where a single private company has limited room to manoeuvre. Michel therefore sees SeedNL as a place where their perspectives can meet, and where plans can be tested against the practical realities of the sector.

Investing in what comes next

Alongside its work on potato value chains, Agrico continues to invest in the starting point of its business: developing new varieties. Agrico Research in Bant is currently undergoing a major redevelopment, with around €15 million being invested in new and expanded facilities. Agrico describes it as the largest investment in the cooperative’s history, with the official opening planned for November 2026.

The investment should give its breeders more capacity to work on new varieties and traits needed for changing growing conditions and markets. It is a fitting example of the two levels on which Agrico operates: continuing to improve the genetics and planting material it can offer, while recognising that their value ultimately depends on the system in which farmers use them.

That combination also captures Michel’s perspective on seed sector development. Agrico can bring varieties, quality, market knowledge and practical implementation experience. Other partners bring capabilities that Agrico does not have. The challenge is to connect those contributions in ways that fit the realities of each market and remain flexible enough to change with them.