News on Potato Cultivation

Hybrid potatoes are piquing the interests of people both within and outside the potato sector. A hybrid combines the best of two systems in order to maximize performance. But what does hybridization mean? And will it change the sector for good? HZPC weighs in.

The Dutch Association of Arable Farmers of (VTA) finds an average yield of 53.622 kg/ha, 8% below last year and on par with the 5-year average. Although tubers are large this season, the VTA predicts low factory yields as a result of a host of quality issues, resulting in an increased demand for potatoes per ton finished product.

The potato harvest on Prince Edward Island is now underway and many farmers have installed security cameras in their fields and around machinery due to potato tampering concerns.

Alaskan potato farms with irrigation had a good year, but farms that didn't have irrigation lost much of their potato yield.

Investigadores de la Universidad Politécnica de Madrid han estudiado la estabilidad en el abastecimiento de productos agrícolas como el maíz, la papa y el cacahuete para la empresa PepsiCo y han desarrollado un software para pronosticar su evolución.

The potato peeling company “querbeet” at the farm Borgmann decided for an optical sorting machine of Marcellissen.

This year, potato yields should be slightly above average in the Canadian prairie provinces Manitoba and Alberta, but figures aren’t available because the harvest is only 10 to 15 percent complete.

In Mexico, Filiberto Cadena Payan, representative in Sinaloa of the Potato Product System, said that it was important for the state's producers to reduce their crop area to the 11,000 hectares allocated to this crop this year in order to continue obtaining the best possible results in the marketing of the potato crop.

Potato grower R.D. Offutt has agreed to scale back its expansion plans in Minnesota in a deal with regulators to protect sensitive groundwater and pine forests in central Minnesota.

Research shows that crops with stacks of two or more resistance genes from closely related species, introduced into the crop via for instance genetic engineering, combined with the simultaneous introduction of resistance management, can ensure the long-term resistance of these plants to economically significant and aggressive diseases.

Today, Black Gold Farms has started the harvest of its red potatoes in the Red River Valley

The potato harvest in Tirol (Austria) has started: from now on the great tasting „Tiroler Speckigen“ and the „Tiroler Mehligen“ with Quality seal „Qualität Tirol“ are available in all branches of the retailer SPAR throughout Austria.

The North-western European Potato Growers (NEPG) expect the total potato production (excluding seed and starch potatoes) of this year' s harvest to amount to 24.5 million tonnes. This is 14.1 percent below the potato production last year and 2.9 percent below the 5-year average.

The J.R. Simplot Company is pleased that the USDA has deregulated the Russet Burbank variety of the second generation of Innate™ potatoes. Simplot is looking forward to the completion of the EPA registration and FDA consultation before the second generation of Innate™ potatoes can be introduced into the marketplace.

After completing a solid and reliable distributor network in Belgium, The Netherlands,Germany and France, Dewulf~Miedema has now completed their dealer restructuring in England, Scotland and Ireland

In the annual VTA sampling of the development of the Dutch potato crop development, mid August a yield was found 16% lower than last year and 7.1 below the 5 year average.

A new 'Focus on Potato' webcast titled “Managing Diseases with Biopesticides in Potato Production” helps growers, consultants, and other practitioners in the potato industry understand the basics of biopesticides and their use in the field.

During Potato Europe, AVR will present its latest potato harvesters, the Puma 3 and the Spirit 9200 Varioweb, for the first time during live harvesting demonstrations to the general public.