New Brunswick
By Matt Hemphill, Executive Director
Potatoes New Brunswick
The 2013 potato planting and growing season in New Brunswick is shaping up to be another one for the record books weather-wise.
The potato-growing areas in the Saint John River valley received too much precipitation early in the planting season, with some areas receiving almost a foot of rain from May 1 to June 5. Growers had a little over six weeks trying to get this year’s crop in the ground, but as of mid-June most of the crop has been planted with the exception of a handful of producers.
A weather system parked itself over New Brunswick for five days beginning May 19 which brought planting progress to a screeching halt. The first weekend in June we received severe thunderstorms that dumped two to four and one-half inches of rain over two days.
All that being said, we suspect yields will be extremely variable from farm to farm, although it is too early to be certain. The weather has put us every bit of three to four weeks behind an average year — therefore, we’re hoping to have a better summer and late fall to allow this year’s crop to get back on track.
With respect to the 2012 crop that is currently in storage, movement to date has been average on the fresh side and we are on pace with our five-year average. Fresh prices are starting to creep up here in New Brunswick and the rest of North America, which is good news in an otherwise poor pricing year on table potatoes.
Processing movement has been steady, and the quality of the processing crop is excellent with payables well above average. Processing varieties currently in storage have been spoken for and processors are on pace to clean up the old crop on time.
The seed shipping season was slow to get started due to the intermittent weather in the northeast Atlantic region and down the Eastern Seaboard. The 2012 New Brunswick seed crop was of excellent quality with little issues as it went to market. The PVY virus cap for all seed planted in New Brunswick for this year is six per cent for all varieties.
Potatoes New Brunswick’s website now hosts the annual seed potato book, so watch for the release of the upcoming 2013 book in late October. Also new to the website are seed sale and equipment sale listings, so be sure to visit us at potatoesnb.com.
Prince Edward Island
By Gary Linkletter, Chairman
Prince Edward Island Potato Board
Much of our focus these days is on the latest technological advance, the newest variety, changes in potato markets — and how to produce potatoes to meet these changes. Every once in a while, it is useful to pause and reflect on how the industry has developed and what lessons we can learn from what has been done in the past.
The potato industry in Prince Edward Island and across North America has undergone dramatic changes in the past 20 to 30 years. The Prince Edward Island Potato Board and the Canadian Potato Museum, located in O’Leary, P.E.I., have joined forces to try and preserve some of that past. Over the course of this summer, these two organizations will be working with local retired CBC journalist Ian Petrie to produce a series of video interviews with people who have been instrumental in shaping the Island’s potato industry and have been a part of the shift in farm types and production practices. Those interviewed will include processing pioneers, exporters, brokers, salespeople and growers who have witnessed the shift from small mixed farms to larger and often multi-family operations specializing in potatoes and the associated move to high-tech farming.
The videos produced will be part of our historical archives, and will also be used to educate the public about the Island’s potato history through Canadian Potato Museum displays and kiosks as well as the Prince Edward Island Potato Board’s social media outlets.
Manitoba
By Garry Sloik, Manager
Keystone Potato Producers Association
The 2013 processing potato acreage as of early June was virtually all planted despite Mother Nature’s obstacles. There were still snow banks in many areas in the first week of May which delayed planting, but a stretch of dry, warmer days allowed planters to start rolling out their equipment by the second week of May. All areas were mostly planted before the end of May.
Unfortunately, the dry weather didn’t last, especially in the southern area of the province around Winkler and Morden. Two big rainfalls, one on the May long weekend and another a week later, delayed the planting of processing potatoes around Winkler, as well as seed and table potato planting in that area.
When the weather co-operates, however, it is amazing how quickly acres can be seeded. Over the years, growers have realized “time is of the essence”, gearing up both in terms of equipment size and the latest technology in order to plant the crop quickly and accurately as the window of opportunity allows.
Total acreage in Manitoba is expected to be down slightly because of two considerations. Firstly, contract volumes were reduced, which would have meant an acreage reduction of approximately 10 per cent given normal growing conditions. Secondly, because many producers lowered their yield expectations as a result of the later planting, they have planted fewer acres but not as much as called for in the volume reductions.
Excess moisture has compromised some of the planted acres already, especially in some areas that had in excess of three inches of rain and where tile drainage couldn’t keep up. These acres can be minimal overall, but do hurt the producers involved.
The majority of Manitoba’s acreage is in very good condition, and we expect the quality of the 2013 crop will exceed the 2012 crop which will be cleaned up by mid-August.
Ontario
By Don Brubacher
General Manager, Ontario Potato Board
Ontario producers are expected to plant approximately 37,500 acres of potatoes this year. This estimated acreage will be verified or changed by mid-July when a planted acreage survey is completed.
The total acreage is expected to be down about 2,300 acres from last year’s planted acreage of 39,800 acres. About two-thirds of the reduction is expected to be in chipping potatoes, with the remainder in table stock potatoes.
The first early potatoes were planted the first week of April, but the planting season was drawn out over April, May and June with some growers just finishing planting in mid-June. Weather has been abnormally cool and wet.
There has been some frost damage to early potatoes, and in many areas low spots within fields have been drowned out. However, in general the crop looks very good, and new crop potatoes are expected to be available on schedule in early July. Storage potato supplies have been cleaning up nicely, and are expected to be gone by the time the new crop is ready for market.
