Testing a beet thinner from 1955.

Despite the huge increase in the use of machines in agriculture, manual labour still remained essential for all kinds of work, as can be seen in this picture from 1955. The photo was taken by A. Moens and displays workers thinning beets on the farm of C.J. de Rijke in the Noord Oost Polder. The photo forms part of a large collection of photos of former Instituut voor Mechanisatie, Arbeid en Gebouwen (IMAG) (English: Institute for Mechanisation, Labour and Buildings). The photos were mostly taken by employees or photographers who were affiliated with the institute. The collection has more than 35,000 photos taken between 1950 and 1990, of which 168 by Prof. Adriaan Moens.