Just two months after its launch at the giant Agritechnica show in Germany, Ropa’s new Panther beet harvester has been in action at Grange Farm, Kirton Lindsey in North Lincolnshire.

Its key feature is a stabilising system which is said to give better traction on slopes and a more even flow through of beet. The main ring trace has been widened from 900mm to 1,000mm to match the capacity of the six row lifting unit better. A Mercedes 530hp six cylinder engine powers the machine.

Though the Panther weighs 27t and has a 20t capacity, Michelin Ultraflex tyres running at 2bar are said to cut ground pressure and allow higher speeds on the road. Nigel Mountain from UK importer CTM says the machine costs £430,000, but you get two services and a training trip to Germany included in that.

Ropa will build about 40 Panthers for 2014-15 of which four have been allocated to the UK. The British market for self-propelled harvesters is about 30 new machines a year plus a number of refurbished ones.

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