Scotland well placed to profit from potato crop investment

Published on Monday 23 November 2009 21:58

SCOTLAND is uniquely placed to benefit from the long term investment in the future of the potato crop according to Allan Stevenson, who chairs the Potato Council. The close connection between growers, research institutes, government, and government agencies north of the Border means the communication lines are shorter and this benefits everyone involved, he claimed.

Stevenson was speaking at the launch of the Potato Council's corporate plan for the future which takes on board the changing needs of the potato sector and recognises in particular the strengths of the Scottish seed industry.

Among the top priorities for the council in the coming years is a requirement to sustain the demand for eating potatoes. While this is a continuing long-term objective, there is this year an immediacy about this as the Potato Council has just announced its first yield estimates with more than six million tonnes having been harvested.

"There is no doubt this year we have produced more than we would have liked to have. Farmers are too good at their job. But we are seeing increased demand in all sectors, fresh, frozen and processed. We always do better in a period of recession as people tend to eat more potatoes. Prices may be low but the industry is strong."

Another priority area for the Potato Council is in increasing seed potato exports.

This market has been successful in recent times growing by 30 per cent in the last ten years making Britain one of the largest exporters in the world. Within Scotland the seed sector accounts for more than a third of the 30,000ha of potatoes grown.

"Britain has become a key exporter of high quality seed, and this is largely thanks to the high health status maintained in seed-growing areas of Scotland. The Potato Council corporate plan will help safeguard this valued sector and deliver a sustainable future for the industry that forms an important part of Scotland's rural economy."

The plan includes investment in a co-ordinated industry approach to grow these exports further, and builds in R&D resource to address specific threats, such as aphid-transmitted viruses.

The Potato Council is now part of the Agricultural and Horticultural Development Board which encompasses all the activities of the six levy-funded farming sector organisations.

Efficiencies gained from this link up will be used to help finance the corporate plan but the Potato Council will implement a 3 per cent increase per year over the next three years in the levy they charge growers and purchasers. This will be the first increase in the levy since 2001.

"Feedback from levy payers suggested that having regular small annual levy increases was the preferable approach," said Stevenson.

"The 3 per cent increase amounts to a proposed grower levy of 40.17/ha and a purchaser levy of 17.51p/tonne. For the majority of levy payers that are growers, this proposed increase amounts to less than 3p/tonne based on an average yield. If we had applied inflationary increases over the past eight years, during which time the levy has been static, it would be 27 per cent higher in 2010 than that which is proposed."