The recent Stakeholder Day at the Potato Research Centre was a resounding success, according to Ed Hurley, associate director of research, development and technology at the Agriculture and Agri-Food facility in Fredericton, N.B.
More than 40 members of the farm, business and scientific communities in New Brunswick and across the Maritimes toured the PRC on Nov. 26 to see the latest work by potato research scientists and what it could mean for the potato industry and consumers.
“It’s about getting our stories out, about who we are, what we do. Every organization, particularly in research and development, has that challenge. We hadn’t done that for quite a while and we certainly got good feedback,” says Hurley.
“I think if we can broaden our stakeholders, our relationships, our collaborations and partnerships across a great spectrum, that can only be good.”
The Stakeholder Day event was co-hosted by the BioNB, an organization that supports and promotes the biosciences sector in New Brunswick.
Serban Danielscu shows a soil core sample to Ken Forrest, director of Growth and Community Services for the City of Fredericton, during a presentation on research into controlling soil erosion and protecting waterways held during Stakeholder Day at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Potato Research Centre in Fredericton, N.B., on Nov. 26. Photos courtesy of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.Helen Tai (right), a genomics research scientist at the Potato Research Centre, talked about how her team is using samples from potatoes and powerful DNA sequencers in research they hope will one day lead to hand-held diagnostic devices that farmers could use in the field to monitor and improve plant health. Listening are Susannah Banks of New Brunswick Soil and Crop Improvement Association and Joey Volpé of the Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick.Potatoes New Brunswick Executive Director Matt Hemphill (left) and McCain Foods Agronomy Director Yves Leclerc (right) look over a drone held by Bernie Zebarth, who is using special photographic images from drone flights over more than 1,000 acres of potato fields in New Brunswick to help potato growers pinpoint crop management issues that may be reducing their yields.Chef Leanne Weins, a chef at LJW Catering in Fredericton, said she felt like a “kid in a candy store” when she explored the culinary potential of six new potato varieties developed by AAFC’s Potato Research Centre for dishes she served at Stakeholder Day.
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