Reading Time: 2 minutes Seed potato growers on Prince Edward Island who lost sales this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, or have had to store or throw out stock, can soon apply for provincial compensation. The provincial government on Monday announced $1.19 million for a new Seed Potato Recovery Program, for seed growers “who can demonstrate that they […] Read more
Tag Archives Potato
P.E.I. seed potato growers backed for lost sales, costs
Pandemic compensation plan to take applications until mid-January
Wireworms a target for first Group 30 insecticide in Canada
BASF picks up registration for two broflanilide products
Reading Time: 2 minutes The list of insecticides cleared for use in Canadian crops now includes its first Group 30 chemistry, as BASF makes plans to launch it in new wireworm control products next year. BASF Canada Agricultural Solutions on Monday announced approval from Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) for broflanilide, a GABA-gated chloride channel allosteric modulator. […] Read more
Plant-based near-chicken on KFC’s Canadian menu to stay
Maple Leaf's Lightlife arm to make 'Plant-Based KFC' sandwich
Reading Time: 2 minutes Updated, Aug. 18: Consumers’ response to a single-day test of plant-based near-chicken menu items in Mississauga last year has led KFC Canada to add the product, full time, to its menu nationwide. The Canadian arm of the Yum Brands-owned chicken chain announced Wednesday its ‘Plant-Based KFC’ sandwiches will be available permanently at its stores across […] Read more
Plummeting french fry sales have potato growers re-evaluating
Restaurant closures slash demand, though 'chip sales have been great'
Reading Time: 2 minutes French fry sales are down across North America as tens of thousands of restaurants have closed during COVID-19, meaning the potato industry has to adapt quickly. Companies that turn potatoes into french fries, wedges and hash browns are slowing down, because there isn’t enough space to store all the frozen product. In Alberta and Manitoba, […] Read more
Unseasonal rain, hail damage winter crops in India
Crop quality issues may pressure prices
Reading Time: 2 minutes New Delhi | Reuters — Unseasonal torrential rains and hailstorms have damaged the winter-planted crops of millions of Indian growers, inundating wheat, potato, chickpea and rapeseed farms in large parts of the fertile northern plains, farmers said. Most farmers were caught by surprise by the repeated rain and hail that has lashed fields full of […] Read more
Sandhill Cranes continue to cause damage
Reading Time: < 1 minute A resolution to allow seed treatments for control of Sandhill Cranes was passed at the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association annual meeting. The cranes dig up seeds and other crops such as potatoes and cause significant damage when they stop in North Ontario. Mac Emiry, who farms in the Sudbury district has heard that […] Read more
Making better spraying decisions with low-cost, early fungal disease detection
Spornado is being tested across Canada, especially in higher value vegetable crops
Reading Time: 3 minutes It was a call from a client looking for a low-tech method for early detection of a fungal disease in potatoes that charted a new course for Toronto microbiology lab Sporometrics. The resulting innovation, Spornado Sampler, has been called the first reliable, early alert system for fungal crop diseases that’s available to farmers at an […] Read more
Emerging potato varieties aim to put more pop into potato market
Federal government overhauling national potato research program to make it more responsive to industry
Reading Time: 4 minutes The latest potato varieties being evaluated for the Ontario market were on display at the University of Guelph’s Elora Research Station in late August for interested growers and industry representatives. The majority were from the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada potato breeding program in Fredericton, which annually provides cultivars with potential for Ontario’s climate and growing […] Read more
Late blight in potatoes detected in Norfolk County
Harvest of potatoes will begin in earnest soon, but vigilance is still necessary
Reading Time: 2 minutes Near the end of August, late blight was detected in one Norfolk county farmer’s potato field within a few Envol plants. The disease is under control as the affected plants were destroyed and the field was sprayed with Ridomil and Bravo. Why it matters: Late blight, caused by the fungus-like pathogen Phytophthora infestnas, is one […] Read more
McCain to dial up fry production in New Brunswick
Reading Time: 2 minutes The company behind about a quarter of the world’s frozen French fries plans to ramp up demand from New Brunswick potato growers with a line capacity upgrade at its recently expanded plant there. McCain Foods announced Aug. 27 it will put up another $12 million to add capacity to its Florenceville, N.B. plant’s French fry […] Read more
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