In celebration of this special occasion, GRIMME has introduced three commemorative models: The VARITRON 470 Edition 1000, VARITRON 470 Platinum TERRA TRAC Edition 1000 and an Edition 1000 two-row harvester, announced the company through a recent press release.

Customers buying either a VARITRON 470 Edition 1000 or a VARITRON 470 Platinum TERRA TRAC Edition 1000 can opt to purchase an upgrade pack for GBP1,000.

“This major milestone is proof of our experience, service and the trust our customers place in GRIMME self-propelled harvesting technology. To mark the jubilee, there are attractive offers for a limited time period on the full range of self-propelled harvesters”, according to the press release.

Self-propelled harvesters excel with the perfectly matched combination of performance, driving comfort and manoeuvrability. The resulting harvest reliability, even under the most difficult conditions, plays a decisive role in many cases.

With the VARITRON 470 and the VARITRON 470 Platinum TERRA TRAC, GRIMME offers 4-row self-propelled harvesters, which can be equipped with a wide range of different separators

First Prototype, Released in 1969

In 1969, GRIMME came up with the idea of developing self-propelled harvesting machines by combining the front part of a Deutz tractor with a single-row potato harvester of the Europa-Standard series.

The rear wheels of the tractor were dismantled and fitted to the modified axle of the harvester. The transmission was driven by a simple chain drive. With the first prototype, a very agile, clear and at the same time soil-protecting self-propelled harvester was created. This prototype was presented at the exhibition of the DLG (German agricultural association) and in Great Britain in the same year.

Introduced to the UK in 2009, the VARITRON self-propelled harvester is an incredibly popular machine, with over 200 operating in Great Britain.

The 1,000th VARITRON was sold to a potato grower in March 2021.