The German company Maschinenfabrik Schmotzer GmbH announced it's transferring its hoeing product range technology to the Amazone Group as of Jan. 1, 2019. As a manufacturer of agricultural and municipal machinery, Amazone widens its product portfolio with the addition of hoeing technology. The manufacturing of the hoes will remain at the site in Bad Windsheim. All employees will remain with the newly founded Schmotzer Hacktechnik GmbH & Co. KG and become part of the Amazone Group. Schmotzer Hacktechnik will carry out all of the sales and service activities as before and the implements will continue to be sold under the label Schmotzer.

Ferdinand Wahl, a longstanding managing partner of Maschinenfabrik Schmotzer GmbH, will stay affiliated with the new company and will continue to have an active role.

Hoeing Technology on the Upswing Worldwide

Amazone Directors, Christian Dreyer and Dr. Justus Dreyer, regard the takeover of the Schmotzer hoeing technology as an important step toward the development of Amazone’s core competence in plant care. “The hoe is experiencing a renaissance especially in the large farming countries. It rather lived in the shadows beyond organic agriculture but is now being viewed as an important tool in farming today once again. Apart from mechanical weed destruction, other positive aspects of hoeing regarding soil structure, root growth and nutrient mobilization are in the foreground,” the directors state.

Schmotzer has built hoes since 1922. A changed awareness in agriculture has led to a continuous growth in this product range for years. “I’m glad to have found in Amazone a partner who will be able to assist and further develop this sector,” Wahl says.

Camera & Steering Systems Allow High Ground Coverages

Wahl explains the reasons that have prevented a broad breakthrough in hoeing technology in recent decades. “While the agricultural benefits in organic farming are already being used intensively in conventional agriculture, the labor and cost related disadvantages slowed down the use of hoeing considerably.

Thanks to technical advances that have only become practical in  recent years, such as the combination of the hoe with camera and steering systems, it is now possible to achieve a better coverage at a significantly more competitive cost per hectare.”

Integrated Plant Production has Great Potential

Christian and Dr. Justus Dreyer illustrate the perspectives for Amazone: “To be certain, we see a huge potential for hoe technology in integrated plant production, which worldwide gains more and more importance. The combination of hoe technology with liquid fertilizer and targeted or even selective application of plant protection in the same working step opens at that point further possibilities for the practice for optimization of agriculture. In this machine segment we also want to take over the innovation leadership”.