After a meeting between federal and industry officials, a system of “pest-free places of production” (PFPP) is now on the drawing board for Prince Edward Island’s potato sector. Last week, Federal Agriculture Minister and P.E.I. MP Lawrence MacAulay reported meeting with staff and representatives of the P.E.I. Potato Board to discuss next steps in the face of new potato wart-related restrictions on the province’s crops since 2021.
Potato wart was first detected in the province in 2000. After a six-month ban on P.E.I. potato exports to the U.S., a system was put in place allowing exports from lower-risk zones where the fungus hasn’t been detected. The zone system allowing U.S. exports continued up until October 2021, when potato wart was confirmed in two P.E.I. fields which were related to previous detections and were already under regulation.
P.E.I. potatoes for consumption were admitted again to the U.S. the following April, but exports of field-grown P.E.I. seed potatoes to the U.S. remain prohibited. A federal ministerial order in place since last Nov. 21 allows for P.E.I. seed potatoes to move to other provinces on a case-by-case basis, and provides for tighter risk controls on P.E.I. table stock and processing potatoes.
Source: albertafarmexpress.ca
