As part of the Pfälzer Spargeltag (Palatinate Asparagus Day), not only Prefiro from Germany but also AVL Motion and Lommers Tuinbouwmachines from the Netherlands presented their asparagus harvesting robots. They are designed to support asparagus companies in times of rising labor costs and the uncertain availability of workers during the harvest.
Autonomous white asparagus harvesting robot
AVL Motion from the Netherlands, represented by Arno van Lenkveld, presented their white asparagus harvesting robot. Van Lenkveld developed the first machine in 2016 at his parents' asparagus farm and founded AVL Motion in 2018. Since 2020, they have been building harvesting machines instead of growing asparagus on the farm. "Our solution is a fully autonomous machine. We had two machines in use last year, and many machines that are currently being built are planned for next year."
Arno van Lenkveld / Image: AVL
"The machines normally run at 3.6 km/h. When the machine is in use, it drives completely autonomously, you don't need an operator." All that is needed is one person at the end of the row to drive the machine to the next row. The machine has a capacity of approximately 140 to 200 kilograms per hour. "The maximum capacity was 6,000 spears per hour." The machine is also easy to maintain. It has real-time performance monitoring, and smart distance control and can cover ten to twelve hectares in 16 hours of use. The first machine was in use at Neessen, with further machines in operation at Böckenhoff GmbH, Teboza, and Geurts-Pouwels.
"The machine is basically finished," said van Lenkveld on the development status. "We want to minimize the innovations, so we just want to improve a few things. In 2026, we will launch the first series with the first customer and build even more machines."
He then extended an invitation: Interested companies could send an operator to work with a company for a day or, two, or ask the other companies about their experiences. Live demonstrations can also be requested by phone or via the website. "You have to see it with your own eyes," he said.
Toine Lommers and Simon Schumacher from the VSSE in dialogue. Photo: VSSE
Compact asparagus harvesting machine
Toine Lommers of Lommers Tuinbouwmachines also presented an asparagus harvesting machine that they have been developing for three years. This machine is a very small machine that travels at 3 km/h and is equipped with GPS, so it works fully automatically. "If there is a lot of asparagus, we have to drive slower; if there is not as much, we can drive faster," he said.
The machine moves across the field and uses a camera to check where the asparagus is growing. Based on the data, the machine, which is available with one or two cutting blades, harvests a spear every second. The operator, who sits behind the machine, can then simply pull the asparagus out of the soil and place it in a box. "It's a very simple task that anyone can do."
The machine pierces the soil and lifts the asparagus a little, just as you would do manually. The new version of the machine also seals the holes after cutting. However, crooked asparagus spears cannot be cut. The machine has a total of eight boxes, which means that you only have to get empty boxes and take away the full ones when all eight boxes are full. The price is around EUR 150,000.
For more information:
Arno van Lenkveld
AVL Motion
Hondsbergweg 2A
5843 AT Westerbeek
0485-840954
www.avlmotion.com/de/
Toine Lommers
Lommers Tuinbouwmachines bv
Ekkerstraat 14
5571 LH Bergeijk
+31 (0) 497 55 60 47
info@lommerstuinbouwmachines.com
www.lommerstuinbouwmachines.com/nl/