Potatoes in Practice draws record numbers
Torrential rain and muddy conditions failed to dampen the enthusiasm of a record 715 growers, merchants, seed suppliers, packers and processors who attended Potatoes in Practice (PiP) near Dundee on Thursday (August 7). Sponsored by Potato Council and hosted by SCRI, Scottish Agricultural College (SAC) and CSC Potatocare, it was a chance for industry representatives from across the world to catch up on the latest potato-related research.
The threat to the industry of the EU pesticide review was top priority for many. But it proved a milestone event for some as the outcome of decades of work on the major skin disease black dot came to fruition.
Potato Council's new chairman Allan Stevenson spoke for many at PiP when he spelled out the industry's current priorities. "The biggest issue facing the potato sector is the ability to provide affordable potatoes to consumers, which is seriously threatened by the potential impact of changing European pesticide regulation."
He encouraged everyone in the industry to act by campaigning against proposed measures that would result in the loss of some of the sector's mainstay sprays, including crucial blight fungicides and herbicides. Specific information on what to do and the potential impact for potatoes has been distributed to levy-payers via Grower Gateway, Potato Council's research-based newsletter.
Aside from politics, PiP marked a milestone for control of the major skin disease black dot. Many years of research, carried out by SAC, SCRI and ADAS, have now been summarised into one easy-to-use guide, that was launched by Potato Council at the event. Managing the risk of black dot gives practical advice to help control a disease that is tough to tackle, but increasingly the cause of costly rejections.
"Black dot has proven a real challenge to the industry because there are so many factors that contribute towards it as a problem, and you don't know whether your management has been a success until well into the storage season," explains SAC's Stuart Wale who led the Potato Council-funded project.
"Recent research has brought major advances in our understanding and ability to predict this disease accurately and it's time for growers to benefit. The beauty of this guide is that it meets the level of understanding any grower would need about black dot, from basic action points to the technical detail."
Two Potato Council-funded projects in particular have fed into new material that has been summarised in the guide, a collaborative effort by some of the country's top plant pathologists and industry experts. This includes advice on diagnostics, now proving a winning way to assess risk of being affected by the disease. The guide is being sent to all levy-payers.
