PEI Potato Board works with farmers to improve returns

The Prince Edward Island Potato Board held a news conference today to outline the initiatives it has taken to improve financial returns for potato farmers. Potato farmers have experienced severe financial losses over the past few years due to low prices and dramatically escalating costs. Potato Board Chairman Kevin MacIsaac stated that the Board continues to emphasize the need for potato farmers to plant only the acres for which they have a market.

The PEI potato industry is integrated, with three main types of potato production: seed potatoes, tablestock potatoes and processing potatoes. MacIsaac said, “We know firsthand that all three segments of our industry have to be healthy in order to have a viable industry overall. Overproduction in any type of potatoes will hurt the financial returns of all PEI potato farmers, regardless of whether they grow mostly one type of potatoes or another. One of our key roles is to provide up to date information on pricing, supply and demand to our growers and other industry members so that they make the best possible decisions as they grow and market the PEI potato crop.”

MacIsaac outlined some of the measures the Board has taken in recent years to improve the returns of tablestock growers, and all potato growers in our province. These included:

- Supporting acreage reductions through United Potato Growers of America and United Potato Growers of Canada. Since those organizations were formed in 2005 and 2006, respectively, potato acreage has been reduced in order to more closely balance supply and demand:

? Since 2004, potato acreage in PEI has decreased by 13,000 acres or 12.2% to the 93,000 acres we have in our province this year. PEI’s potato acreage is now down 20,000 acres or 17.7% from the peak of 113,000 acres in 1999.

? Since 2004, potato acreage in Canada has decreased by 45,900 acres or 10.6%.

? Since 2004, fall potato acreage in the U.S. has decreased by 110,600 acres or 10.6%.

Through the United Potato Growers organizations in both countries, information is shared on supply and demand, current market conditions, and pricing. The PEI Potato Board then works to get that information out to Island potato farmers and the potato dealers and exporters who market the crop in North America and around the world. This is done through a variety of means, including:

- Participation in weekly marketing conference calls with growers right across the U.S. and Canada. Information is also shared among United member organizations.

- Here in PEI, the PEI Potato Board provides growers and dealers with the weekly industry newsletter, North American Potato Market News at no cost.

- The PEI Potato Board also gives regular PEI market updates to Island growers and our dealers. It also started a new initiative for the 2008 crop. Meetings and conference calls have been held with tablestock growers to make sure that they have the most recent information on markets. Two grower meetings were held in August, and to date, two conference calls have taken place. The next grower conference call is Thursday.

- On those calls, information is provided from other areas of Canada and the U.S., and pricing and movement for PEI potatoes over the previous week is discussed. The growers then talk about pricing for the coming week.