North America Edition
Yesterday, Premier Dennis King said that Prince Edward Island potato producers in will have to start destroying a massive surplus in a matter of days if a resolution is not found soon to the dispute that has blocked exports to the United States,
King led a delegation to Capitol Hill this week, meeting with US senators in hopes of ending a ban that has halted potato shipments from P.E.I. south of the border after the discovery of a fungus in Island potato fields.
But, atlantic.ctvnews.ca reported, as the visit drew to a close, King worried that a large portion of this year's bumper potato crop will have to be destroyed.
Ban will not be resolved this year
The ban of Prince Edward Island’s potatoes to the US won’t end this month, federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau has stated. Exports of fresh P.E.I. potatoes to the US were suspended on Nov. 22 after potato wart was found on two farms in the province. The US had warned Canada it would prohibit imports of Island potatoes unless the federal government banned them voluntarily.
Today, provincial Agriculture Minister Bloyce Thompson announced provincial funding for Island potato farmers. After speaking with federal officials, he said he wasn’t confident the export prohibition would end this year.
Source: ipolitics.ca
