Aardappelteelt

The potato harvest is now underway in the Red River Valley. Yields are all over the board ranging from poor to excellent. Most of the fields with poor yields were damaged by heavy rain that fell on, and around June 30th.

Sander Dagen raised an exceptional seed potato crop this year. That makes it sting even more as he is forced to abandon approximately 80% of his acres because he cannot harvest them.

RD Offutt, the largest potato producer in Minnesota, is backing away from a controversial expansion in the State just south of the Mississippi River headwaters after state regulators insisted on an environmental study of the potential contamination of groundwater.

Northern Plains Potato Growers Association (NPPGA) president Chuck Gunnerson, announced his upcoming retirement at the February 20th, NPPGA Annual Meeting in East Grand Forks, MN.

According to the University of Minnesota Extension 'Spudbug' Newsletter, it is shaping up to be a Colorado Potato Beetle (CPB) year in the Red River Valley.

Late blight is a potentially destructive disease of potato and tomato crops worldwide that can result in significant losses if detected too late, diagnosed incorrectly, or if not treated properly.

Potato grower R.D. Offutt has agreed to scale back its expansion plans in Minnesota in a deal with regulators to protect sensitive groundwater and pine forests in central Minnesota.