News on Potato Varieties and Seed

Extremely low prices in the European ware potato market have put a dent in HZPC's sales of certified seed potatoes in Europe.

Hybrid potatoes are piquing the interests of people both within and outside the potato sector. A hybrid combines the best of two systems in order to maximize performance. But what does hybridization mean? And will it change the sector for good? HZPC weighs in.

Canada's potato company famous for its small potatoes - the Little Potato Company - has partnered with CTV's The Marilyn Denis Show and Masterchef Canada's Michael Bonacini to create The Little Chef Casting call, an opportunity for young cooks to have a chance to appear on TV and win a culinary trip of a lifetime

The Dutch Embassy in Kenya will next week launch the Potato Value Chain Africa website at the Eldoret Agri-Trade Fair, in a bid to support farmers in the country.

Australian potato breeders Peter and Sandra Scott believe they bred the purple potato with the ideal colour and taste

Fresh Solution Network has expanded its line of Side Delights Gourmet Petite Potatoes line with two new offerings, Sweet Fingerlings and Choice Russets.

Armenian potato growers are able to export up to 10 thousand metric tons of seed potatoes to Russia, Hrachya Berberyan, head of the Agrarian and Peasant Union said recently.

Research shows that crops with stacks of two or more resistance genes from closely related species, introduced into the crop via for instance genetic engineering, combined with the simultaneous introduction of resistance management, can ensure the long-term resistance of these plants to economically significant and aggressive diseases.

Today, Black Gold Farms has started the harvest of its red potatoes in the Red River Valley

A finales del año pasado se aprobó el cultivo de la papa (o patata) transgénica Innate, desarrollada por la compañía JR Simplot. Se trata de una variedad manipulada genéticamente para que sea más productiva, una de sus más importates cualidades.

The J.R. Simplot Company is pleased that the USDA has deregulated the Russet Burbank variety of the second generation of Innate™ potatoes. Simplot is looking forward to the completion of the EPA registration and FDA consultation before the second generation of Innate™ potatoes can be introduced into the marketplace.

Last thursday, the head of the United Nations agriculture agency, together with scientists and delegations from Peru, Costa Rica and Norway witnessed a ceremony during which potato seeds were deposited in the Svalbart Arctic seed vault.

EUROPLANT Pflanzenzucht GmbH is represented this year at PotatoEuropeto and will show their extensive range of table potatoes, including several varieties suitable for organic cultivation.

The new season’s fingerling potato crop looks outstanding for Heyburn, Idaho’s Southwind Farms. The company reports excellent quality, consistent sizing, and good yields.

The Odisha State Government’s plan to achieve self- sufficiency in seed potato production has gone for a toss with the National Seeds Corporation (NSC) and National Horticultural Research and Development Foundation (NHRDF) backing out of its commitment to produce quality seeds within the State.

The three cross cutting themes of gender, partnerships, and capacity building are the main focus of the 2014 CIP annual report. Cooperation is the common thread that binds them all.

Scientific results of the potato field trials in Flanders and the Netherlands demonstrate that gene stacking is necessary for a strong and lasting resistance to late blight (Phytophthora infestans).

This year's major news of the Texas A&M Potato Breeding Program is a new early potato variety called Reveille Russet, a russet baking potato headed to the fresh market.