No-nonsense, no-frills potato news stories from around the world
TOMRA Food’s Processed Food business area has appointed its first Global Category Director for Vegetables and Fruit. The new role – created as part of TOMRA’s ongoing strategy to tailor solutions even more precisely to specific food categories – has been filled by Belgian Jacob Hobbel.
This article was written by Amy Skea of Potato House. “As with any industry, research and development is key, and the UK seed potato industry is no exception and is always progressing. We at Skea Organics and Potato House are proud to be involved in this, and this year we hosted some organic potato demonstrations with several of the leading names in the industry involved.”
You’re familiar with whey, pea, and soy, but potato protein? It might not be just a fad, writes Julia Savacool in a news story published by Yahoo!life. According to Savacool, a new study in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise finds that consuming protein extracted from potatoes has the same benefits for helping your body rebound after a workout as consuming milk protein.
Pulsemaster, a leading provider of Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) systems for the potato processing industry, earlier today announced the appointment of Ben Lemieux as Key Account Manager responsible for the Americas region. Mr. Lemieux joins Pulsemaster with 28 years of experience in the food processing industry. He is based in Canada’s New Brunswick province.
Avebe showcased a clean label, plant-based alternative to Parmesan cheese based on potato ingredients at the Food ingredients Europe (FiE) trade show in Paris, France in December 2022. The Dutch starch manufacturer continues to focus its expertise on the burgeoning dairy-alternative cheese market with this latest innovation.
During John Deere’s CES 2023 keynote address, the company revealed two new technologies, ExactShot and an electric excavator, that will help Deere’s customers be more productive, profitable, and sustainable. ExactShot allows farmers to reduce the amount of starter fertilizer needed during planting by more than 60%. The technology uses sensors and robotics to place starter fertilizer precisely onto seeds as they are planted in the soil.
Following 16 years of dedicated volunteer service to the World Potato Congress Inc., Mr. John Griffin will be stepping down from his role of President of the World Potato Congress Inc. Dr. Peter VanderZaag will step into the role of President and CEO of WPC Inc. WPC also announced Dr. Nora Olsen as the new Vice-President of the World Potato Congress. Brian Douglas accept the nomination of Director to the Board.
Quality over quantity is the watchword for the 2022 russet crop in Idaho, as growers grappled with increased input costs and weather challenges that led to fewer acres being planted. “The potato quality looks amazing this year — maybe the best in recent memory,” said Travis Blacker, vice president of industry relations and research for the Idaho Potato Commission. He said Idaho farmers have welcomed the increased demand for potatoes and have been using their profits to put money back into their businesses.
Technico Agri Sciences Ltd – a wholly owned subsidiary of ITC Limited – was recently certified for a second consecutive year as a “Great Place to Work” by the Great Place to Work Institute. This certification is recognized around the world by employees and employers alike, and is considered by many to be the ‘Gold Standard’ in workplace assessment.
University of Idaho Extension will highlight the latest in news and research affecting the state’s most famous crop during the 55th Annual Idaho Potato Conference and Trade Show, scheduled for Jan. 18-19 in the Pond Student Union Building on the Idaho State University campus. Event partner Spectra Productions will host a trade show featuring more than 70 booths and displays from agricultural vendors and service providers.
The hot chip shortage has now hit close to home [in Australia], with the internet divided over a recent photo of an empty Coles fridge, writes Joanne Tran in a news story published by The Daily Telegraph. In a now-viral Reddit post, a user shared a snap of the frozen chips section at their local Coles, and shockingly, it was completely empty.
Lamb Weston announced today its fiscal second quarter 2023 results and updated its fiscal 2023 outlook. “We delivered strong top and bottom-line results in the quarter,” said Tom Werner, President and CEO. “Because of our financial performance in the first half of fiscal 2023 and our broad operating momentum, we have raised our annual sales, gross margin and earnings targets. In addition, we look forward to beginning to capture strategic, commercial and operational benefits from the acquisition of our partner’s interest in our European joint venture.”
Australian supermarket giant Coles has introduced a two-item limit on frozen chips after flooding across the eastern coast impacted the supply of potatoes, according to a report by 1News. A Coles spokesperson told Nine that the limit, beginning on December 15, will likely be lifted within months. “Poor weather in the eastern states has affected supply of some frozen potato products across the industry,” they said.
Wild weather could be taking a toll on the humble spud. The prolonged spell of wet weather has sparked concern New Zealand could be in danger of a potato shortage. Potatoes New Zealand chief executive Chris Claridge told NewstalkZB in a live interview that “potatoes aren’t particularly good swimmers and don’t like being submerged in water for long periods.” Claridge said access to the fields to harvest the crops is also hampered in the wet weather.
As state and federal regulators try to limit synthetic pesticides available to growers, Cornell entomologist Brian Nault is investigating the use of nematodes to manage potato pests. “As of the fall of 2022, we have collected three data sets from field trials with entomopathogenic nematodes [EPN] that examine their impact on Colorado potato beetle populations and crop damage by wireworms,” Nault says.
The 35th project to be completed by Haith for Greenvale AP delivered the perfect Christmas present. Commissioned in June 2022, two new Haith wash lines allowed Greenvale’s Cambridgeshire facility to handle the busy festive period easily. Greenvale saw throughput at its Floods Ferry site almost double. However, despite the increase, the company continued to meet its exceedingly high-quality standards and benefit from exceptionally low running costs and water use.
Worldwide growers face severe issues with the allocation of fumigants, reduced control from conventional nematicides, or bio- and conventional nematicides that provide suppression or just don’t work. Vigilance Nematicide is GroPro’s patented bio-nematicide, providing fumigation and in-field application control, and it’s a proven nematicide that has gone head-to-head in multiple fields and demo trials worldwide with both conventional and bio-based nematicides.
The two new tattie organisations formed after the demise of AHDB Potatoes are appealing for support from growers as the industry looks ahead to an uncertain season. The Seed Potato Organisation (SPO) is looking for members to commit a redeemable £1000 to establish the organisation. GB Potatoes aims to be a coordinated lobbying voice for the entire potato industry.
Precision agriculture technology HarvestEye is showcasing its machine learning driven insights at the Potato Expo in Colorado – North America’s largest potato industry trade show. HarvestEye’s patented technology provides timely insights on root crops as they are lifted – presenting growers with valuable information on the size and count over the whole field, which is otherwise absent from conventional sampling. HarvestEye is aiming to grow its presence in the leading potato growing states in the U.S.
South Africa’s potato farmers are ending the year off under immense pressure. And although industry players are optimistic about the industry’s future, it will be years before the industry recovers and farms return to previous levels of profitability, as Duncan Masiwa reports for Food For Mzansi. As it stands, potato farmers in the country are not turning in profits.
A University of Idaho-led research team has received a $6.8 million U.S. Department of Agriculture award to develop new diagnostic tools, management practices and resources for controlling harmful nematodes in potato fields. The four-year project is funded through the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s Specialty Crop Research Initiative. Louise-Marie Dandurand, with U of I’s Department of Entomology, Plant Pathology and Nematology, heads the project, titled “PAPAS: Potatoes and Pests, Actionable Science Against Nematodes.”
“I recently visited a state-of-the-art potato storage in western Manitoba, a very large building with all the bells and whistles,” writes Peter Alder, Appraiser at FFC in this technical article. “I could feel the excitement and pride shared by the owner of this large facility as it promises to deliver everything a pile of potatoes would ever need to make it through the storage season in great condition and deliver a great quality product just-in-time to the processing plant.”
Spud lovers near and far, lend us your ears, for the largest potato trade show in North America is scheduled to be held in Aurora, Colorado in the early days of 2023, as Nick Wills reports for KDVR. From Jan. 4-5, Gaylord Rockies in Aurora will host the 15th annual Potato Expo 2023. This will be the first time the event has been held in Colorado.
Discussions on supply contracts for the 2023 potato crop have commenced early, although at the time of writing, many potato growers in the UK are no further forward in reaching agreement, as Robert Harris reports for Farmers Weekly. A reduction in area is both necessary and inevitable, says Andersons director Nick Blake. A number of growers are choosing to exit.
Dear folks. I want to wish each and all of our readers a very happy 2023! Potato News Today registered a little over 12,000 visitors each month during the past year, and we surely appreciate all of you from well over 140 countries for stopping in and spending some of your time here with us – thank you so much… We will continue reporting important potato news stories as best we can in 2023, and we hope you will visit us whenever you can! With kindest wishes, Lukie. www.potatonewstoday.com
World Potato Congress President John Griffin is pleased to announce Potatoes USA as the organization’s newest Gold Sustaining Partner. “The support of Potatoes USA under the leadership of CEO Blair Richardson, who also serves as a WPC International Advisor, will continue to propel WPC forward in our mandates. These include planning for the first ever International Potato Day and in promoting the 2024 Congress, to be held in Adelaide, Australia,” Griffin said in a news release issued earlier today.
Everyone loves a good potato chip, but in Pennsylvania, they take it to the next level, writes Katherine Beck in a news story published by TastingTable. Their passion for the salty snack is so strong that the state’s unofficial nickname is the so-called “Potato Chip Capital of the World.” But more specifically, there is a “beltline” in the southern part of the state where potato chips reign supreme, according to NPR.
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