Potato company in Spain looking to introduce new Peruvian potato varieties

Patatas Meléndez, based in the Castilla y León region in Spain, is reportedly working in collaboration with potato seed company HZPC, investigating the suitability of several potato varieties from Peru with the aim to introduce these varieties to the growers where the company operates. Juan Manuel Coello, Operations Director at Patata Meléndez, says they want to offer growers alternative choices for the traditional potato varieties grown and thereby stimulate diversification in the potato sector. He says: “We have started at first with a small acreage to see how these varieties perform and test their adaptability to the climate and soils in the area where we work. And we are very satisfied with the results we have obtained in the field.” He further notes the “spectacular results” of taste tests done recently, saying that several of the new varieties have high dry matter content and are exceptionally suitable for several ways of preparation in consumers’ kitchens. Three of the four varieties that are showing great promise at the moment are blue skinned/fleshed and one is red. Patatas Meléndez also launched a new website recently, www.patatasmelendez.com, where growers can log in and enter data specific to their individual potato growing operations. The full article can be read in Spanish