In collaboration with Dutch and German partners (under the umbrella of Agrobiokon), we have developed several versions of a web-based decision support system for starch potato growers.

The latest version - OPTIRas III - provides advanced decision support and e-learning/knowledge transfer for starch potato growers in the Netherlands and the Niedersachsen region of Northern Germany.

OPTIRas provides five main areas of support, each shown below with a example image from the relevant module.

The Varieties module presents the user with a detailed list of the available starch cultivars for their region, and allows them to rank and order that list according to various preferences that may be of interest to them, for example, PCN resistance, cost, draught tolerance, etc.

The Seed Rates module is used to calculate the costs of home produced seed and compare them to the price of bought in seed. The user is given an overview of the relationship between seed tuber size, yield level, seed rate, and the final size grading.

The PCN module demonstrates the financial effects of nematode infection on a crop. Calculations for the current season as well as for the following five harvests are provided, and the module can be used to select the optimum cultivar that best combines profit with a reduction of PCN infestation.

The Nutrients module provides nutrient recommendations for a field based on the results of a previous soil analysis. It takes into account nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, lime, sulphur, magnesium, and manganese.

The Harvest Damage and Storage module provides an overview of the storage loses that are caused by variety specific effects and through harvest damage, showing financial repercussions for each case.

OPTIRas is available in English, Dutch, and German versions.