Key Business Outlooks 2026 sees Wilfried Rombauts, Market Unit Manager Potatoes at Optimum Sorting, reflecting on how labor scarcity, efficiency demands, and quality control have hardened into long-term constraints for potato processors. He explains why investment decisions are becoming more phased and data-driven, and how scalable, performance-proven sorting systems are increasingly viewed as essential infrastructure rather than optional upgrades in modern processing operations.

Looking back at 2025, which customer pressures proved structural rather than temporary, and how did they reshape your commercial or product strategy?

Reflecting on 2025, it became clear that challenges like labor shortages, throughput efficiency, and consistent quality weren’t temporary; they were structural. These realities underscored the vital role of Optimum Sorting’s automated solutions.

Processors increasingly faced the challenge of doing more with fewer operators while maintaining stable quality. This drove strong demand for our optical sorting solutions in potatoes, vegetables, and several non-food markets, where accuracy, reliability, and capacity are critical.

Our commercial focus shifted toward demonstrating performance per processed ton and long-term operational stability. Product-wise, we continued investing in robust, easy-to-integrate machines delivering consistent results with minimal operator intervention. 2025 confirmed that automation-driven sorting is no longer optional but a structural requirement across multiple industries.

As you plan for 2026, which market assumptions are you revising, and where do you see the greatest hesitation or uncertainty among your customers?

As we look ahead to 2026, we are revising our market assumptions mainly around the timing and phasing of investments, not around their necessity. Across potatoes, vegetables, and non-food markets, customers remain convinced that automated sorting is essential, but they are more cautious in how and when they execute projects.

The greatest hesitation we see is linked to macroeconomic uncertainty, energy costs, and ongoing volatility in raw material availability. This makes customers more deliberate in decision-making, often opting for phased implementations rather than large, one-step investments.

For Optimum Sorting, this reinforces the importance of flexible and scalable sorting machines that can be integrated gradually without compromising performance. It also means supporting customers with clear performance data, fast commissioning, and predictable operating costs.

While uncertainty remains, the underlying demand for reliable, high-capacity sorting solutions continues to grow. Customers are not questioning if they need automation, but how to implement it in the most resilient and future-proof way.

How do you expect investment behavior among processors to evolve in 2026, particularly regarding capacity expansion, efficiency upgrades, and automation?

In 2026, we expect investment behavior among processors to continue shifting from pure capacity expansion toward efficiency upgrades and automation. Rather than adding more lines, many processors are focused on extracting more value from existing capacity. Automated sorting plays a central role in this shift. 

For Optimum Sorting, this trend confirms the demand for high-performance, scalable sorting solutions that can be integrated into existing processing lines and upgraded over time. Investments in 2026 will be driven less by volume growth alone and more by the need for resilience, predictability, and long-term operational efficiency.

Where did your strongest growth opportunities come from recently, and what did those projects reveal about changing customer priorities?

Our strongest growth opportunities recently came from automated sorting projects across potatoes, vegetables, and several non-food markets. These projects were typically driven by customers looking to improve efficiency, secure consistent quality, and reduce operational dependency on labour.

What these projects clearly revealed is a shift in customer priorities. Rather than focusing on individual machine features, processors increasingly prioritise reliability, throughput stability, and predictable performance over time. Sorting machines are expected to operate as a stable backbone of the processing line, not as isolated pieces of equipment.

For Optimum Sorting, this confirmed the importance of delivering robust, scalable sorting solutions that integrate seamlessly into existing operations and continue to perform under varying conditions. 

How do you balance near-term customer demands with longer-term R&D investment, especially in a more cautious capital-spending environment?

In today’s cautious capital-spending environment, balancing short-term customer needs with long-term R&D investment is critical. At Optimum Sorting, we keep innovation closely tied to real operational requirements.

Our R&D is driven by direct customer feedback from ongoing projects, ensuring developments deliver immediate, measurable gains in efficiency, yield, and ease of use—while laying the groundwork for future progress.

Rather than innovating for its own sake, we invest in technologies that boost reliability, scalability, and automation. This gives customers better performance today and confidence their investment remains relevant and upgradeable over time.

Which developments in 2025 most disrupted your planning or sales pipeline, and how did your organization adapt?

In 2025, geopolitical uncertainty and changing tariff conditions in the United States were the most disruptive factors for our planning and sales pipeline. These developments primarily affected project timing, investment approvals, and the structuring of contracts, rather than underlying demand for automated sorting solutions.

Customers in the U.S. market became more cautious, often delaying final decisions or requesting alternative project phasing to manage financial risk. In response, Optimum Sorting adapted by increasing flexibility in our commercial approach and supporting customers with clearer cost breakdowns and predictable performance metrics for our sorting machines.

Which external drivers—energy, labor availability, regulation, digitalization, or sustainability requirements—are most influencing equipment purchasing decisions today?

Today, labour availability and energy efficiency are the most influential external drivers shaping equipment purchasing decisions. Across potatoes, vegetables, and non-food processing, customers are under constant pressure to maintain output levels with fewer skilled operators and tighter energy budgets.

This makes automated sorting machines that are easy to operate, energy-efficient, and reliable highly attractive. At the same time, digitalization is playing a growing supporting role, enabling better process control, performance monitoring, and consistent quality outcomes.

From your perspective, which policy or regulatory developments would most support long-term technology investment in the potato processing sector?

From our perspective, the most supportive policies for long-term technology investment in potato processing are those offering stability and predictability. Processors invest more in advanced sorting and automation when regulations are clear and consistent.

Policies promoting automation, energy-efficient equipment, and digitalization—through incentives, depreciation schemes, or innovation support—can accelerate adoption, helping processors modernize while staying competitive globally.

A stable policy environment enables companies like Optimum Sorting to keep investing in R&D and gives customers confidence to commit to future-proof sorting solutions.

How do you see the relationship between promised technological performance and real-world operational results evolving, and where do customers now demand clearer proof of value?

Processors are no longer satisfied with theoretical specifications; they want clear, measurable proof of how sorting machines perform under their actual operating conditions. Today, customers increasingly demand transparency on yield improvement, labour reduction, energy consumption, and uptime. Demonstrations, reference installations, and performance data play a much larger role in purchasing decisions than in the past.

Clear proof of value—before and after installation—has become essential in building trust and supporting long-term customer relationships.

What is your five-year vision for processing technology in the potato sector, and how does your company plan to remain relevant as customer expectations mature?

Over the next five years, potato processing will move toward highly automated, AI-driven operations, with sorting central to quality control and value creation. AI will enable more precise defect detection, adaptive decisions, and consistent performance under changing conditions.

Meanwhile, customers will increasingly focus on total cost of ownership. Beyond performance, they expect sorting machines to be easy to maintain, remotely supported, and designed to minimize downtime and service needs. Lower lifetime maintenance costs will matter as much as technology.

Optimum Sorting stays ahead by combining robust machine design with intelligent software and AI functionality that deliver measurable benefits. By prioritizing reliability, remote support, upgradeability, and cost efficiency, we help customers future-proof operations while controlling complexity and costs.