Inglaterra: Results of UK potato farmer survey

The survey covered 20% of all the GB total potato area grown.

The grower survey indicated that 39% of land which grew potatoes nationally was on rented land, but there was a lot of regional variation to this- for example Scottish potato farmers said that 57% of their potatoes were grown on rented land. Around 40% of all potatoes grown in Scotland are grown for seed and growers are not allowed to grow seed on PCN infested land.

There is also a specific need to grow seed potatoes free from pests and diseases so this is an understandably high figure. 44% of land was rented in the North West for potatoes, which also grows some seed, 37% in the Eastern region, 34% in the West Midlands and 33% in Yorkshire and Humberside. Just 30% of land was rented out to grow potatoes in the South West and the lowest figure was just 25% in the East Midlands.

The second question asked of potato growers was “What percentage of your total arable land is infested with PCN?” The overall figure was 25% for Great Britain but from a regional perspective the Eastern region and the Northwest both have the highest % at 36% each. The West Midlands claimed that 33% of their total arable area was infested, in the West Midlands 30%, in Yorkshire and Humberside 21% and Scotland just 12% with the South West just 3% infested.

Another area of concern to potato growers is late blight and particularly so as the blight population has changed in recent years to a population dominated by the PINK 6 and the BLUE 13 strains – both these strains have the ability to reproduce at lower temperatures, have a quicker life cycle and produce more spores. In effect they are more aggressive and more virulent.

To read about the measures potato growers are taking to control later blight, please click here.

Source: farminguk.com