Despite the current high prices, the potato sector remains under considerable pressure and faces a number of major challenges, not least the contraction in the area of the crop being grown over recent years.
And the UK’s largest outdoor event for the sector, Potatoes in Practice, which took place at James Hutton’s Balruddery Farm outside Dundee last week, heard an impassioned plea for all sectors of the potato industry to work together to address the challenges and threats currently facing the keystone of the £4 billion-a-year supply chain.
Addressing the event, Mark Taylor, chair of the GB Potatoes producer group, warned that while the recent burn-down orders served on a number of Scottish ware crops due to potato leaf roll virus infections was undoubtedly a major issue for the sector, it wasn’t the only threat facing the potato acreage which had slipped below the 100,000 hectare mark.
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He said that collaboration, co-operation and co-ordination were all needed within the sector to remain one step ahead of the ever-increasing list of threats facing the industry.
On top of extremes of weather, the growing disease and pest problems presented by climate change and the loss of plant protection products, there was also the need for a strong voice and a united front when lobbying the recently installed new government.
“There’s no doubt that all budgets will be squeezed as the new government seeks to cope with the financial black hole and reprioritise much of its spending – and a united voice will be absolutely necessary if we’re to convince policymakers that any funding coming to our sector will be money well spent,” he said.
He also confirmed that roughly £1.4 million of levy payers’ funds left over after the winding up of AHDB Potatoes had been secured by the organisation after protracted negotiations with the Treasury as to who actually owned them.
“While we are custodians of the remaining capital, we will ensure that it is used to the benefit of whole industry,” said Mr Taylor, who pointed to the continued support of the Fight Against Blight disease monitoring programme and the development of an aphid forecasting system as two examples of this.
But on a wider front, he highlighted that both the sector and policymakers had to look to the future.
He said: “For too long there has been too much focus on short term and we need to get back to a longer view for the future of the industry if it is to remain competitive.”
Mr Taylor also commented that machinery costs were currently ‘out of control’ and the unrealistic pricing of the equipment required for modern businesses to thrive represented a serious challenge to the sector’s viability.
Meanwhile, Mark Clark, who has recently joined the Scotland-based Seed Potato Organisation to help drive forward recruitment for the co-operative, focused on the specialist needs of the seed potato sector and reported that membership had now passed the 50 mark and currently represented more than 50% of the Scottish seed acreage.
Encouraging more producers to sign up to the organisation, he also revealed that effective budgeting meant the cost of joining the producer-owned and run organisation now stood at £500 rather than £1,000 as had previously been the case.
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