News on Potato Cultivation from United Kingdom

AHDB has announced it is winding down significant activities on behalf of the horticulture and potatoes sectors. While awaiting a decision on the future by Ministers in England, Scotland and Wales, AHDB wants to reassure levy payers their views have been heard.

Scotts Precision Manufacturing has extended its distribution network with the appointment of a new sales and service agent to cover Scotland.

While an official opening might not be possible, the team at GRIMME UK’s new £3m depot have still found a way to celebrate - supplying the 2000th GRIMME de-stoner to one of the country’s leading vegetable growers.

Tim, currently Chief Operating Officer of the Food and Drink Federation (FDF), will take up his position at the Stoneleigh-based levy board on 31 August 2021, replacing Jane King. During the intervening period, the interim AHDB CEO will be Ken Boyns, AHDB Chief Finance, and Operations Officer.

A ballot to decide the future of the AHDB Potato levy has concluded and the voting report has been passed to Ministers for a decision on what happens next.

Planting a Green Headland on uncropped areas around potato and field vegetable crops can capture nutrients worth £200/ha over the growing season.

To ensure the research AHDB funds has the biggest impact and benefit for the potato industry, they work to connect growers with researchers and scientists with initiatives like their Strategic Spot Farms.

The GB potato industry accounts for over 117.46Kha of planted area this year, and is represented by 1,611 growers in 2020. Growers have faced difficult seasons of late.

Pepsico UK has joined forces with British clean-tech firm CCm Technologies to reduce their carbon footprint by turning their potato waste into fertiliser.

Sowing wildflowers into potato crops could reduce aphid-carried viruses and offer an alternative to declining access to insecticides for growers.

One of the UK’s leading manufacturers of vegetable harvesting equipment has launched an innovative conversion kit that allows owners of the GRIMME GT 170 trailed harvester to convert to a windrower.

Haith Group has seen a resurgence of interest in its innovative bag filling machine after a video posted on social media was viewed more than one million times.

Nitrous oxide emissions (300 times more powerful than CO₂) are jeopardizing Earth's future climate. Agriculture caused almost 70% of global N₂O emissions in the decade to 2016.

Fast food giant McDonald's is working with McCain Foods and Prince's Countryside Trust to help farmers in the United Kingdom improve soil health and boost resilience to climate change and Brexit

With the coronavirus pandemic hitting the UK domestic potato trade, we have estimated a 1% drop year-on-year in the GB potato area for 2020/21, with the provisional area standing at 119Kha.

A PERTHSHIRE farming business which supplies table and seed potatoes to the UK, Europe, North Africa and Middle East will increase throughput by up to 100 percent by modernizing operating processes after securing £1 million in support from banking giant

Gowan Crop Protection Limited, an affiliate of Gowan Co. LLC., has entered into agreements with Bayer AG to acquire rights to the active ingredients fenamidone and pencycuron.

One of Britain's leading designers and manufacturers of vegetable harvesting machinery has reported a record number of sales in 2019. Scotts Precision Manufacturing sold 70 Evolution separators last year, 20 more than its previous high.