b'INDUSTRY NEWS in the province, the Potato Growers of Alberta (PGA) say in itsTRADE NEWSnewsletter. The project is jointly funded the Alberta Plant HealthAlberta Declared PCN FreeLab and Results Driven Agriculture Research (RDAR), withAlberta is officially free of the potato cyst nematode (PCN) which $343,844 coming from RDAR. opens trade borders for them, the government says in a news The project will establish a system for early and rapidrelease.diagnosis of all potato diseases, the newsletter notes. PotatoIn 2007, the CFIA placed two fields in Alberta under a Notice diseases have the potential to limit yields and prevent marketof Prohibition after routine testing raised suspicion of the access for Alberta growers. presence of PCN. With the production of potatoes in these fields We are taking a proactive approach to disease managementhalted, years of restrictions and surveillance followed across the by providing our growers with an assurance platform that willprovince, the release notes.allow us to respond quickly to plant health concerns before theyAlberta exports the most seed potatoes in Canada, meaning become damaging to our industry, the newsletters says. PCN has led to challenges for exporting to the United States The developed protocols will be optimized for use in Albertaand Asia, the release notes. The government of Alberta, Potato and will be used by the Alberta Plant Health Lab to expand rapidGrowers of Alberta, Canadian Agricultural Partnership (CAP) diagnosis capacity. The protocols will also be shared with otherand the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) have worked Alberta researchers and labs, the newsletter notes. together on getting it out of Alberta.Two new staff has been hired by the PGA for the project. JunyeOther Alberta potato farmers were ultimately able to resume Jiang has been hired as the research lead and Will Feindel as theexport of seed potatoes to the U.S. in January 2009, though the lab technologist.issue has continued to impact international market access for Alberta seed potatoes. More than a decade later, the CFIA has now removed the restrictions after the 2020 tests all came back negative. LIFEGARDThe FIRST Biological Plant ActivatorLifeGard triggers a plants immunity to disease & has no MRLs.46SPUDSMART.COM Summer 2021WWW.UAP.CA'