No-nonsense, no-frills potato news stories from around the world
Leading French potato producer PARMENTINE has equipped its new line in Samazan with two optical sorters from TOMRA Food – one the TOMRA 5A, the other the Sentinel II. The company processes 180,000 tons of potatoes per year, selling three-quarters of these in France and the remainder in other European nations, bringing together more than 400 producers and 240 shareholders.
Today, the French fry. Tomorrow, the global food supply chain. Farther Farms is a high-growth food technology start-up, based in Rochester, NY, working to solve one of society’s greatest challenges: how to make food go farther. The company began by creating the world’s first commercially-available shelf-stable, fresh-cut style French fry that’s never-frozen and ready-to-cook. The French fries have a 90-day shelf life at room temperature – no artificial preservatives added, and no freezing or refrigeration required.
Potato growers in Northern Ireland whose incomes have been directly impacted by the pandemic will receive financial aid, the government has announced. FarmingUK reports that the Covid-19 support package will contribute towards the verifiable losses incurred by farmers and growers during periods of lockdown. The financial aid will help to address the cash flow difficulties and financial impact of losing valuable markets.
AHDB’s potato storage research team in the UK has worked closely with industry representatives from the British Potato Trade Association, Fresh Potato Suppliers’ Association, National Farmers Union, National Farmers Union of Scotland and UK Potato Processors’ Association to submit a position paper to the Chemical Regulation Division (CRD) of the HSE.
Restrain company will host this webinar tomorrow, Thursday, 8 April, 2021. Join this webinar to learn about: The last part of the storage with ethylene; how to preserve the quality of your potatoes; and the do’s and don’ts for Restrain storage management.
Storing potatoes long-term is often challenging and this is especially so if there is a reliance on ambient ventilation. Even in the most favourable seasons, it is seldom possible to hold crops at optimum temperature in ambient stores beyond early May. In this article, specialists at AHDB’s Sutton Bridge Crop Storage Research (CSR) facility in the UK explore how refrigeration can help deliver on long-term storage.
For generations, Brian Sackett’s family has farmed potatoes that are made into chips found on grocery shelves in much of the eastern U.S. About 25% of the nation’s potato chips get their start in Michigan, where reliably cool air during September harvest and late spring has been ideal for crop storage. But with temperatures edging higher, Sackett had to buy several small refrigeration units for his sprawling warehouses. Last year, he paid $125,000 for a bigger one.
There is generally pressure for potato store managers to closely monitor carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in the industry. However, this management tends to be met with mixed views. Storage experts at AHDB’s Sutton Bridge Crop Storage Research in the UK are looking to settle the debate in an ongoing storage trial.
A new potato store is saving huge amounts of time and cost for a Norfolk farming family in Britain. Their new store is a PosiStor from Crop Systems Limited, and is fitted with the company’s SmartStor controller, and one of the first to feature a glycol fridge. It has opened up new business opportunities for them, says Bruce Poortvliet.
Dewulf, full-liner in machines for the cultivation of potatoes and root crops, has introduced several new options for their MH 24x series of receiving hoppers. The new options for the MH 24x are a central outlet, a presentation conveyor for the variant with two units and larger separation of the PU spiral rollers (up to 70 mm).
Controlling potato sprouting with ethylene and mint oil is requiring a more careful approach to store management, as most potato storage managers know very well after the use of CIPC was banned in the UK. Interested parties are cordially invited to join AHDB Potatoes’ Sutton Bridge team in the UK on the 9th of March for a webinar to hear about the latest research and top tips on how to get the best out of ethylene and mint oil sprout suppressants.
Jake Blauer is the newly hired post-harvest potato physiologist at Washington State University (WSU).
According to an Interfax-Ukraine report, the Institute of Agrarian Economics jointly with the Ukrainian Association of Potato Producers have proposed a state-funded program for the development of processing potato growing for 2021-2025, which provides, in particular, for the construction of potato storage facilities with 30% funding from the state.
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Following on from its guide How to reduce the impact of potato bruising on your profitability, Wyma caught up with Leighton Hill, Solution Engineer, to answer some questions about gentle handling, why some fertilizers increase the likelihood of bruising, and the perfect temperature for potato processing.
“We are investing in strengthening our team, providing further expertise, knowledge, and experience to our customers, backed up by investing in our workshop and warehouse facilities at the Works Happisburgh, Norfolk,” says Ray Andrews, Managing Director of Crop Systems Ltd. Andrews says his company recently appointed Tony Barnes as Sales Manager as part of continued expansion plans of Crop Systems. Tony has been involved with the potato industry for the last 25 years.
The corona crisis is causing a decrease in the demand for potatoes for the processing industry. As a result, sprout inhibitors for good safe storage are in the spotlight again. One of the most used sprout inhibitors at the moment is ethylene. What explains its popularity? And what do you need to take into account if you are considering a switch? Fernando Rubio L
This past Tuesday, January 12, saw the launch of the new DOWNS CropVision – a machine that manufacturer Dubrulle DOWNS calls “the new generation optical grader for unwashed potatoes”. Dubrulle DOWNS is a manufacturer of handling and storage solutions for potatoes based in France. The DOWNS CropVision is fitted with the latest technological innovations that allows for high- speed and high-quality mechanical grading of unwashed potatoes before it enters storage – at a rate of up to 100 tons/h.
Fusarium is one of the most important genera of phytopathogenic fungi, causing potato wilt in the field and potato tuber dry rot during storage. The objectives of a study by researchers from Algeria and Poland were to identify Fusarium species associated with both potato diseases in different growing regions in Algeria, and to assess their pathogenicity.
The World Potato Congress (WPC Inc) is pleased to present its next webinar on January 14, 2021 with Todd Forbush, long-time engineer with Techmark, Inc. Todd’s presentation is titled: “The impact of climate change on removing energy from a potato storage with an ambient air ventilation system”. Todd will inform participants about ambient air potato storage ventilation systems relying on cool outside air to remove energy from the potato storage resulting from both field heat and potato respiration.
Crop Systems Limited is the UK
An emergency authorisation (EA) for the use of the as yet unapproved sprout suppressant 1,4-dimethylnaphthalene (DMN) in the UK was secured two weeks ago – following an application from AHDB, supported by the Potato Processors Association (PPA) and approval holders DormFresh. AHDB has prepared a ‘frequently asked questions’ document for store managers who wish to know more.
Management of rots, both in the field and post-harvest, is an ongoing challenge for potato producers around the world, also in Australia. The Soil Wealth and Integrated Crop Protection (ICP) Partnership Network recently hosted a podcast during which two specialists from the US and Belgium discussed a trial that was set up in Australia to explore the effect of sanitisers and/or drying on the development of post-harvest bacterial soft rot in potatoes.
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