Come join us for a tour of the Prince Edward Island potato industry in Eastern Canada! Prince Edward Island has been known for many years as “The Garden of the Gulf,” in Canada, with potatoes being the most plentiful crop coming from that garden. Potato production is a major contributor to the Island economy, with over a billion dollars worth of economic impact each year. Potatoes are the primary cash crop on the Island and Prince Edward Island continues to be the largest potato-producing province in Canada, growing one-quarter of the potatoes in the country. Approximately 60% of Prince Edward Island potatoes are destined for processing, 30% go to the fresh market through retail or food service, while 10% are grown for seed purposes. Seed and table potatoes are shipped to over 20 countries annually, including the United States, Puerto Rico, Ukraine, Italy, Thailand, and more.
I am in the process of organizing a tour of the Island industry for the week of March 15, 2015. The tour will officially end the evening of March 20, and participants will return home the weekend of March 21.
A full program of events and excursions will be posted on the Potato News Today web site in due time. For now we can inform you that the focus will be on personal attention of tour members. We will only accommodate a small group of up to 10 people. Tour members will be introduced in person to companies, organizations, farmers, and other individuals involved in the potato industry on Prince Edward Island. Based on our experience with previous tours we expect tour members to come from a number of countries and this will be an opportunity in itself to connect with industry folks from around the world.
During the tour we will cover companies and organizations related to several potato industry sectors:
- Seed production
- Breeding and variety development
- Storage facilities
- Technology development
- Equipment manufacturing
- Farming operations
- Processing
- Packing
- Research
- And more…
The base of the tour group will be Charlottetown, the main city on Prince Edward Island. Tour members will arrive and depart from the airport in Charlottetown.
Price: The cost for the tour on site will be US$2,400. Tour members are responsible for their own travel costs to and from Prince Edward Island. The tour price includes:
Transportation from and to Charlottetown airport; local transportation to and from sites of interest; entrance fees where applicable; accommodation in Charlottetown for 6 nights; 6 breakfasts; three lunch meals.
Information on the Prince Edward Island potato industry can be found on the local Potato Board web site: www.peipotato.org
Information about Prince Edward Island can be found on the local tourism web site: www.tourismpei.com
Please get in touch with me if you have an interest in the tour, or if you might have any questions in this regard. You are also welcome to inform me about any specific needs and interests you might have when participating in the tour. I can be reached at lukie@pair.com. Look forward to hear from anyone with an interest in the tour.
Lukie Pieterse
Prince Edward Island
