New Zealand: Major new potato research project announced

Potatoes New Zealand Inc. has won funding from the Ministry of Primary Industries for a major research project aimed at improving crop yield. The $260,000 three-year project, which will be financed through the Sustainable Farming Fund (SFF) and managed by the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR), will investigate the impact of different potato crop rotations on soil borne diseases and soil quality. Potatoes New Zealand Inc. Chief Executive Champak Mehta said the aim of the project was to develop and implement strategies to increase potato yields by 12 per cent, in line with the organisation’s industry target. More