With potatoes for processing and the table already being dug up in some areas, it looks like a good year for prairie growers.
Some of the best early chipping and baby spuds being harvested are tipping the scales at more than 10 ounces, said Tom Gonsalves, a business development specialist in charge of potatoes for Manitoba Agriculture.
“In general terms, province-wide, the potato crop is in reasonably good shape overall.”
He added that severe weather, excess moisture, strong winds and hail, especially in the Portage la Prairie and Winkler areas, may have caused some damage and reduction in yield, but it is still too early to tell.
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The effect on potatoes from the heat wave that made its way across Alberta to Manitoba will become clearer once more is harvested.
“Summertime heat is a good thing, but at night you would be looking to have temperatures cool off,” Gonsalves said.
He added that if the extreme heat continued much longer, it could stress the plants and lead to a repeat of last year’s “sugar end” problems in Manitoba.
More of an aesthetic or quality issue than a disease, sugar end causes downgrades at the processing plant because part of the french fry turns dark brown or black when it is cooked due to different sugar content.
“The big story is that there has been no late blight found in Manitoba so far this year,” he said, adding that Minnesota and North Dakota have also been spared the disease.
Manitoba’s total potato seeded area is estimated to be 89,000 acres, with most of it already contracted with processors. Table and seed potatos account for about 10,000 acres each of the total.
Gary Sloik, manager of Keystone Potato Producers, and chair of the United Potato growers of Canada, said Manitoba is likely to have a good crop this year.
“It was planted early, and earlier on we had quite good moisture. We didn’t need the heat that we’ve had the last little bit, but with the irrigation, we still have potential for a good crop.”
Sloik said that some eastern potato areas, such as Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick, have been hit by late blight.
Ward McNichol, a potato broker in Saskatchewan, said the fields overall look good. The recent spate of hot weather hasn’t halted growth in the roughly 10,000 acres – half seed and half table – that the province grows.
“I’ve looked at lots of potato crops and they all looked pretty good. Late blight doesn’t seem to get us. I think probably the worst thing to affect us would be an early frost,” McNichol said.
He expected the potato market’s perennial problem of oversupply and depressed prices would continue in the coming year.
Vern Warkentin, executive director of the
Alberta Potato Growers, said harvesting of that province’s 52,000 potato acres has already begun in the south.
“They’ve started harvesting now for chipping potatoes and french fries,” he said, adding that this week should see activity stepping up.
The crop, about 80 percent irrigated, has survived the heat “very nicely.” The only potential problem spots can be found around the Lacombe area where excessive moisture delayed seeding.
“I think there were some acres that weren’t even put in because it got just too wet,” he said.
Late planted crops may be at risk of an early frost in coming weeks, he added.
