As the industry prepares to come together again, BP2023 sees a record number of trade stands as companies seemingly realise the true power and benefits of face-to-face events.

The British Potato Show is thrilled to welcome seminars back at this years show, presenting visitors with technical talks on current industry topics and issues.

Evolution of the show has continued with crop production exhibits being joined by an ever-expanding range of post farm expertise. So, while growers will be updated on everything from varieties to sprout suppression, factory staff will be exploring developments as diverse as haulage, water treatment, the very latest in optical sorting and whole crop utilisation.

What visitors can expect from BP2023

• Scores of Europe’s leading potato companies
• The latest in potato research & development
• All types of farm, packing and processing machinery
• New breakthroughs in production and processing
• Business news and emerging opportunities
• Buyers, suppliers and advisers from plough to plate

Adding an extra layer of prestige to the event, the National Potato Industry Awards will be held at the Old Swan in Harrogate on Wednesday 22^nd November – the first evening of the show. These prestigious awards are a celebration of excellence and innovation within the potato industry and the BP2023 team is thrilled to announce the return of the hugely popular guest speaker, Rod Woodward, following his much-lauded appearance at the last awards ceremony.

With its unique blend of information-sharing, networking, and innovation, BP2023 promises to be an essential event for anyone involved in the British and global Potato Industry.

For free visitor tickets and to plan your visit the British Potato Show website.

Our November 2023 issue dispatches next week with a full BP2023 preview in our annual Potatoes feature – Sign up here to receive the magazine for free.

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Andrew Connon, vice president of NFUS.

The ability to trade seed potatoes between Scotland and Northern Ireland will re-open on 30th September.

Brexit resulted in the loss of the valuable trade in Scottish seed potatoes to all European markets, including Northern Ireland, overnight.

Pre-Brexit, Scotland sold an estimated 22,000 tonnes of seed potatoes to European customers, including 2,500 tonnes to Northern Ireland.

A benefit of the Windsor Framework, ratified by the UK and the EU in March 2023, was the opening of ‘green channels’ that would allow the resumption in trade in some goods, including seed potatoes.

Sales to Europe still blocked due to Brexit

While trade with Northern Ireland is re-opening, sales of seed potatoes to Europe remain blocked since Brexit.

NFU Scotland is calling on the UK government to re-double its efforts to resolve this impasse, recognising that there is significant intransigence at an EU level to seek a resolution. It strongly believes that any seed potato trade between the EU and GB must be reciprocal.

“Brexit and the Northern Ireland agreement brought significant and costly disruption to long-established trading arrangements between Scotland and Northern Ireland,” said NFU Scotland vice president Andrew Connon.

“It took three years of lobbying, but the Windsor Framework agreement and the introduction of ‘green’ channels for goods traded between Scotland and Northern Ireland saw sales of seed potatoes specifically recognised in the text of the agreement.”

This breakthrough creates opportunities for Scottish growers to re-establish links with the Northern Irish potato industry, he added.

Potato stocks in Europe under threat

With trade in seed potatoes to the rest of Europe still denied, NFU Scotland is continuing to lobby the UK Government and the EU to re-establish this trade link. “The complete, overnight loss of the European market for Scottish seed was a very damaging post-Brexit consequence.”

Mr Connon said: “It is widely known that potato stocks in Europe are now under threat due to plant disease pressures and it is time that the EU Commission listened to its member states who are desperately in need of fresh high health Scottish seed potatoes.

“The lack of availability to high health seed potatoes to grow healthy crops, compounded by some extreme weather, is having an impact on potato supplies and availability across Europe.

“Common sense and commercial reality need to prevail over political gamesmanship.”

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Now in its second year of three, Branston’s Net Zero crop nutrition project is working with partners agritech firm B-hive Innovations, the University of Lincoln, crop storage technologists Crop Systems Ltd and multiple growers. The project is establishing a process that will achieve the lowest possible GHG emissions while still producing a commercially viable crop.

In this year’s Net Zero field trials – which are being undertaken with David Armstrong Farms in Lincolnshire and Arbikie Farming in Scotland – the main focus is on optimising crop nutrition. Nitrogen fertiliser is an essential element in growing a crop of potatoes, but it also makes up a significant part of the potato carbon footprint.

As with most other conventional field crops, a good dose of fertiliser is needed to encourage plant growth and boost production. Branston is looking at the potential to rely less on synthetic fertilisers through a range of different trials – from novel sources of fertiliser, to the potential for reducing fertiliser inputs and recycling nutrition in the field.

In both trial fields, Branston established a base-line plot with no nitrogen applied. Then it has set up further plots with varying levels of nitrogen application, both from conventional and from novel sources. It is already noticing differences in the colour and vigour of the canopies; it will be interesting to see what variation we get in yield at harvest.

Branston is already noticing differences between plots in the colour and vigour of the canopies.

Crop nutrition – testing plant feeding levels

Branston are also assessing how much it can feed through the leaf as the crop is growing. R-leaf is a new technology with the potential to change the way we think about crop nutrition.

Developed by Crop Intellect, the photosynthetic catalyst is sprayed onto the leaf and, in the presence of sunlight, turns atmospheric NOx gases such as nitrous oxide (N₂O), nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), into nitrate that can be used by the plant. R-leaf could enable growers to reduce the fertiliser application at planting, knowing that they can top up through the growing season.

To work out what the plants need as they grow, Branston is evaluating a new system from Piketa. This system will give in-field, real-time nutrient analysis via the leaves. It has the potential to save the cost of lab analysis and allow growers to respond immediately by feeding the crop what it needs, when it needs it.

The carbon footprint of producing synthetic nitrogen fertiliser is already well documented.  What Branston is particularly interested in for the Net Zero project is what happens as the crop grows and the fertiliser breaks down in the soil. On this project it’s working closely with the University of Lincoln. Together they are looking at soil health and gaseous emissions at field scale throughout the growing season.

Nitrous oxide – which is 265 times more potent a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide is released from the soil as synthetic nitrogen-based fertiliser is broken down. The University of Lincoln is measuring this important greenhouse gas throughout the growing season across all the fertiliser plots.

They are also collecting and analysing the CO₂ and other gases that are released from the soil, across the fertiliser trial and the range of different types of cultivations that are also part of the Net Zero field trial.

The potato industry needs a step change if it is to achieve its ambitious net zero targets.

A commercially viable crop

Different potato varieties may also play an important role in reducing the carbon footprint of production. Plant breeders are assessing new varieties to see which ones can perform at low levels of nitrogen and can produce a quality, high yielding crop with reduced irrigation and lower quality land.

While much of the work undertaken is around reducing inputs, the team is well aware that yield and quality are still important. Any reductions that lower the marketable yield could necessitate an increase in other inputs and detriment the overall carbon footprint. Branston is looking at ways to get the balance right for truly sustainable potato production.

In reality, a step change is required from the potato industry as it looks to achieve ambitious net zero targets. A “business as usual” approach isn’t going to cut it anymore, and the responsibility rests across everyone involved to find solutions.

The direction of travel is changing, and for the most part the industry seems to be steering in the right direction. However, a consistent, concerted, combined effort is needed to sift the ideas and find data-backed, sustainable solutions that can help us achieve our collective target.

Please visit the Branston website for more information.

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There has been a significant rise in blight outbreaks nationwide, after the UK had 170% of its usual July rainfall – making it the wettest July since 2009 and the sixth wettest on record, according to the Met Office.

The Fight Against Blight monitoring service, run by the James Hutton Institute, has reported 120 crop outbreaks to the middle of August. This puts 2023 on track to be a high-pressure year alongside 2019, 2012 and 2007.

The outbreaks are spread around all potato-growing regions, with typically drier areas like East Anglia having no respite.

EU_43_A1 a “big concern”

“It has been a challenge to keep on top of the samples coming into the lab,” says Dr David Cooke, research leader at the James Hutton Institute.

“We receive samples of fresh lesions, isolate and characterise the sample. We also do DNA analysis on what we receive. The aim is to spot any changes in the blight population as the season progresses so that spray programmes can be adapted based on the present genotypes.

“EU_43_A1 is our big concern because it is resistant to the carboxylic acid amide (CAA) group of fungicides, which includes mandipropamid. The key finding from our work so far this season is that we have not yet found it. We plan to conduct fungicide sensitivity testing on the 2023 isolates in the coming weeks”.

Even though EU_43_A1 has not yet been found this season, that does not mean the blight risk is low because 36_A2 is one of the dominant strains, cautions David. It has been present for a few years and is very aggressive, which poses challenges if it takes hold in a crop.

“Use chemistry wisely”

“Trying to firefight blight is very difficult, but the chemistry must continue to be used wisely, especially concerning the longer-term risk of EU_43_A1. We do not want other actives struggling under high pressure being misused. It is tempting for growers to keep using the products that will give them the best control, but they must use a range of fungicides.

“The good news is that the canopy has finished growing, so at least when a fungicide is applied, it protects all the leaves for a period. I would encourage growers to keep an eye on the lower canopy to ensure there is no residual amount of blight there. This could be the case following frequent heavy rainfall, which will spread the disease down the canopy,” advises David.

The worry is that the conditions have also suited tuber infection from any foliar blight established in the crop. Lower temperatures will encourage the production of zoospores, and combined with soil moisture, there is a high risk that if foliar blight remains unchecked, it will quickly become an issue in the soil.

Top tips for tackling blight

“We should now be mid-way through blight programmes with most crops at the canopy complete stage,” says UPL’s potato technical expert, Geoff Hailstone. “When outbreaks are found in the field, the priority must be to clear these up and stop them spreading as soon as possible. Where this is the case, Proxanil (cymoxanil + propamocarb) should be included in a tank mix.

“Cymoxanil is known to be one of the few actives with kickback activity and has a very low risk of developing resistance. Propamocarb has strong anti-sporulant activity, good movement in the plant and is only active in the carbamate resistance group.

“When tank-mixed with a protectant fungicide such as cyazofamid, Proxanil strengthens the activity and gives excellent resistance management. Where blight appears in the crop, there should ideally be two closely timed sprays, but growers must ensure that label intervals are adhered to,” cautions Geoff.

If foliar blight is active in the canopy, especially if conditions are favourable for zoospore production, then the risk of resistance developing can be particularly high.

“I would recommend continuing to include mancozeb for resistance management and to protect uninfected leaves. Although mancozeb only has protectant activity, it still has a role in controlling outbreaks when mixed with curative products. Mancozeb is sold as a straight product in Manzate 75WG or formulated with cymoxanil in Nautile DG (cymoxanil + mancozeb).

“Hopefully, the weather turns more settled until harvest, and growers can keep on top of disease in their potato crops, but they must maintain blight programmes until the foliage and stems are dead. Where a grower knows that foliar blight has been present in the crop, they should study the susceptibility to tuber blight of the variety they are growing and prioritise harvest accordingly,” concludes Geoff.

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Due to erratic weather conditions, potato crops were slow to establish this year in cold, wet seedbeds following a late planting, and have suffered during subsequent periods of damaging heat and light stress.

Compounded by many growers cutting back on fertiliser inputs, these have increased the risk of stresses that make potatoes more susceptible to Alternaria infection, said Syngenta technical manager Andy Cunningham.

Historically, infections have been identified from mid to late July, but have already been reported this season, with instances of serious plant die-back.

Moreover, a reduction in mancozeb availability and less use in extended blight programmes during the dry weather has also enabled Alternaria to gain a foothold in some crops, increasing the risk of spread between fields, Mr Cunningham warned.

“Growers and agronomists should be thinking of including Amphore Plus in their blight strategies now to target Alternaria, possibly one or two sprays earlier in the programme than would be the case in a normal season,” he advised.

Successive years of a Syngenta Alternaria monitoring initiative, with sampling and analysis by NIAB, had highlighted the consistent presence of multiple Alternaria species spores throughout the crop growing cycle.

However, it was consistently the most prolific A. alternata that was identified infecting potato leaves earliest in the season, followed by the larger lesions of A. solani becoming more prevalent later – frequently on the back of damage caused by earlier A. alternata infection.

“That was a really important finding, which was contrary to potato industry thinking at the time,” Mr Cunningham pointed out.

“It reinforced the importance of Amphore Plus early in the alternaria strategy, as it provides the highest possible loading of difenoconazole, that is proven more active on A. alternata than other options, as well as being effective against A. solani.”

“It also means potatoes are getting the blight protection of the full rate of mandipropamid in the same application,” he added.

Later in the season, agronomists can switch to including Amistar in the blight spray programme for Alternaria protection against the later infecting A. solani, he said.

Prevention is key

Mr Cunningham went on to highlight that any fungicide treatment must be applied preventatively for Alternaria. “However, if you catch infection early, or when just a limited number of plants in the crop have been affected, the clean plants can still be effectively protected,” he noted.

He also advocated that managing potato crops to make them more resilient to stress will help better cope with the impact of an Alternaria attack. That could be through mitigating heat stress using Quantis, nutrient stress with fertiliser, or drought stress with irrigation.

“The pressures of stress on potato crops have been increasing year on year, which raises the risk of more significant Alternaria outbreaks.

“Along with increasingly scarce water resources, coupled with the climate patterns of prolonged hot, dry periods, growers could look to a new generation of bioproducts to optimise use of resources and reduce stress on plants, as well as adapting fungicide strategies to incorporate the most effective Alternaria protection,” Mr Cunningham concluded.

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Jonathan Kemp of Mercian Ltd believes a potato sprout control programme should start with an in-crop application of Fazor.

Maleic hydrazide is found in the potato plant growth regulator (PGR) Fazor and is crucial in potato sprout control programmes, the company claims.

Jonathan Kemp of Mercian Ltd, which is a UK supplier of potatoes to the crisping industry, believes that a grower’s potato sprout control programme should begin with an in-crop application of Fazor.

“The most important application for potato storage is Fazor. If Fazor is unused, growers can find it difficult to manage their crop storage,” Jonathan warns.

To help maximise the value of maleic hydrazide this season, UPL has issued guidance to potato growers. Geoff Hailstone, UPL’s potato technical expert, claims maleic hydrazide is used by 90% of growers in the industry

“It has become essential to start a sprout control programme, and because it is applied to the crop, it is the most cost-effective method.

“Typically, the first application of Argos (orange oil) will not be necessary until two to three months after storage if the crop has had an application of Fazor,” he says.

“Without this, an application of Argos might be needed within two to six weeks, or even sooner following a hot growth season. In addition, crops treated with Fazor have a lower risk of secondary growth, reduced internal sprouting in store, and it significantly reduces volunteer potatoes in the following crops.”

Like all PGRs, timing the application for the correct growth stage is crucial. It is important that maleic hydrazide is properly absorbed and translocated to the growth points of the tubers.

Mr Hailstone advises that Fazor should be applied when the saleable tubers are larger than 25mm, at the first signs of the lowest leaves senescing, when some flowers are still present but most have fallen, and three to five weeks before haulm destruction.

“Getting the correct timing can be tricky, especially when growers are juggling blight spray programmes and irrigation, but growers must prioritise Fazor because they only have one opportunity to get it right,” he notes.

“In particular, the tuber size must be correct because if Fazor is applied too early, it may prevent tuber development and cause loss of yield. This is because maleic hydrazide stops cell division but not cell expansion. Once tubers have reached 25mm in size, the cell division is complete, and there is no negative effect on the yield.”

“When it comes to application, Fazor should not be tank mixed with any other products. It should not be applied less than 24 hours before irrigation or rainfall, and only in the evening if the daytime temperatures exceed 25C. I would recommend a water volume between 350 and 550 litres per hectare to get the optimum crop coverage.

“Where ideal application conditions are not possible there is still very valuable sprout suppression from maleic hydrazide levels of three or four parts per million, but if growers are able to follow this guidance, then they will have achieved a significant milestone in ensuring their potato crop has the best possible marketable quality,” Mr Hailstone concludes.

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Now is a good time for growers to review their irrigation strategy to ensure that their crops receive the irrigation they need whilst using available water in a sustainable way.

Fiona Law-Eadie, senior agronomist at Crop4Sight, explains last summer’s drought followed by a dry autumn and winter means some reservoirs are still not at full capacity, despite the wettest March in 40 years.

“There are several ways growers can manage irrigation, but there’s a fine line between giving crops sufficient water and damaging crops by over-irrigating,” says Fiona.

“Efficient irrigation maintains the correct soil moisture for crop demand throughout the growing season and is a key factor in producing high-yielding, quality potato crops.

“Excessive irrigation that keeps soil near field capacity for substantial periods can aggravate disease, quality issues, impede root growth, reduce nitrogen uptake and damage soil.

“These factors all contribute to unprofitable crops, costing growers money.”

Fiona explains, when it comes to managing irrigation there are two main approaches.

“Firstly, direct soil methods, which use various techniques for measuring soil water content or tension.

“Accuracy of such results are sensitive to good calibration of equipment and being installed at locations in the field representative of both soil type and the irrigation applied – the cost associated can make this a very expensive option.

“Whilst measuring available soil moisture, these systems don’t consider crop water demand or irrigation capacity, often resulting in overwatering.”

Fiona explains: “Secondly, water balance methods, using crop growth stage, environmental and soil data to model crop water demand, either via a manually calculated balance sheet or computerized irrigation scheduling tool.

“The Crop4Sight Irrigation Scheduling Module, available on mobile or web, allows growers to generate real-time irrigation scheduling.

“One of the great benefits of this system is that schedules can be produced as often as a grower needs, especially if weather conditions change dramatically.

“Other systems run on a weekly basis and crop requirements can change significantly during that time.

“This flexibility delivers more efficient water management as growers are able to match irrigation to crop demand.

“Creating a whole farm irrigation strategy taking into account both water requirements of individual crops, as well as irrigation capacity and demands from irrigation equipment elsewhere on- farm.”

Fiona explains, to use the module, growers need to enter information about their fields and irrigation plan which takes a matter of minutes to do.

“In season, growers then need to input the amount of irrigation applied, rainfall data and canopy measurements which will then automatically generate accurate schedules as often as required which is unique to Crop4Sight.

Find out more about the Crop4Sight irrigation module here.

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Lincolnshire farmer David Armstrong and Andy Blair from Branston.

The company was awarded £2.1 million by Innovate UK in 2022 to carry out its net zero project over the course of three years with partners including agri-tech firm B-hive Innovations, the University of Lincoln, crop storage technology firm Crop Systems Ltd and growers in Lincolnshire and Scotland.

This year, an extensive range of field trials will be undertaken on potato crops throughout the season. The project aims to sustainably change the way that potatoes are grown, stored, and transported, while still producing a commercially viable crop – and in turn delivering a staple food that is better for the planet.

Andy Blair, technical field manager and project lead at Branston, commented: “Potato growers all want to know how they can reduce their fertiliser, fuel and electricity consumption as part of their net zero strategies, so they are extremely engaged in what we are trying to do.

“Fertiliser use is a major challenge and plays a significant part in all our trials. During the coming year, we will focus efforts to understand different novel fertiliser types and application rates to investigate yield and quality during growing.”

Branston has been involved in developing an organically derived low-carbon fertiliser that uses by-products and has a much lower carbon footprint than conventional products.

Varieties displaying vigorous growth that have the potential to perform with fewer inputs have been identified through previous trials, and 12 of these varieties will be included in the net zero project. Plant growth and nutrient uptake will be monitored continuously throughout the growing season as part of the second year of trials.

Nicola Matthews, Branston net zero research manager, explained: “Knowing as much as possible about our soil biology, physical properties and nutrient content will allow us to tailor cultivations and applications to maximise yield while reducing the greenhouse gases that are released during the production of the potato crop.”

“The aeration of the land is activating microbes and causing carbon dioxide release from the soil, one of the main principles behind regenerative agriculture is to minimise soil disturbance,” she explained.

While reducing cultivation in potato production is difficult, the team will continue to look into minimum tillage techniques as well as more extreme growing methods such as growing under a straw mulch.

Alongside the University of Lincoln, Branston is also analysing new technologies that could be employed in the growing process, with trials of an R-leaf technology spray – a nitrogen-fixing photosynthetic catalyst – converting nitrous oxide in the atmosphere into available nitrogen that can be taken up through the leaf.

In addition, the net zero project is looking at innovative cold store designs to keep stored crops in optimum condition while minimising energy usage and environmental impact. Crop transport and its associated carbon footprint is also coming under the consortium’s spotlight.

Mr Blair concluded: “The new trials have meant a real acceleration in the project, now this year is much bigger than last year, and it is great to tap into the scientific knowledge and all the new technologies that are being offered.

“We are very excited to see what the results bring and hope this ground-breaking research will lead to major changes and opportunities for the potato production industry from start to finish.”

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Smart and sustainable farming is a key pillar of McCain’s commitment to make planet friendly food, anchored on its pledge to implement regenerative agriculture across 100% of its global potato acreage by 2030.

However, the transition to regenerative farming often requires up-front investments in new equipment and practices from farmers, which can create a barrier to uptake.

To incentivise more farmers to make climate-friendly changes, NatWest will be offering a first-of-its-kind initiative to potato farmers in the UK through its asset finance arm Lombard. In addition, McCain has also committed to offering a contribution towards the interest payable for assets that support regenerative agriculture practices.

“Given the increasingly unpredictable climate, the shift towards regenerative agriculture practices is vital to futureproof the farming industry, and we want to support McCain potato farmers who are making the transition towards more sustainable operations,” said James Young, vice president of Agriculture at McCain GB&I.

“We know that switching to regenerative agriculture can come with financial implications, and this new partnership will be a part of the effort to alleviate those barriers.

“We are working with our growers, customers and key stakeholders to ensure the long-term viability of potato growing in the UK.”

Ian Burrow, head of Agriculture at NatWest, added: “NatWest and Lombard are thrilled to be working with McCain to help their farmers invest in sustainable farming practices. Agriculture is a sector of paramount importance to the UK economy, and one which is at a turning point, facing higher costs, inflation and the daunting challenge of net zero.

“This partnership further enhances the aims and ambitions of the Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI) taskforce, which NatWest is proud to be a part of, and we will continue to stand by farmers and work closely with influential partners, like McCain, to help drive change across the industry.”

To further accelerate the scaling of greener practices in the farming industry worldwide, McCain joined the Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI) Agribusiness Task Force alongside a number of businesses and NGOs. The company’s other initiatives include grants for cover crop seed and fully-funded soil health assessments, as well as offering free pollinator seed this spring.

In addition to its partnership with NatWest, McCain has committed to a 31% contract indexation in 2023 to offset the pressures of rising inflation in farming, which equals a £35 million investment.

What’s more, to further enhance knowledge transfer to its farmers, McCain is testing regenerative agriculture practices and trialing new technology at its Farms of the Future projects, located in McCain’s hometown of Florenceville, New Brunswick and in South Africa. In the UK, the work is being supported by three demonstration farms across the country.

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According to Mr Thacker, the four key micronutrients supporting healthy potato crop growth and formation are potassium, nitrogen, phosphate, and calcium.

“Both nitrogen and potassium are key for vegetative growth, tuber formation, and bulking, but potassium in particular is required in large quantities,” he said. “A 38.5t/ha crop can remove more than 120kg/ha of nitrogen whereas it can remove over 200kg/ha of potassium.”

Both nitrogen and potassium are recycled from leaf to the tuber during bulking, with the latter being vital to high yields and maintaining tuber integrity. Alongside potassium, phosphate is also required in relatively large quantities during early growth.

Meanwhile, calcium plays a key role in soil pH and achieving those all-important quality parameters, but is often deficient in UK soils.

Mr Thacker added: “Potatoes need calcium to strengthen the skins of the tubers, providing a better skin finish and better resistance to many diseases including black scurf, silver scurf, and common and powdery scab.”

Calcium deficiency is also a common cause of internal rust spot, further highlighting the importance of applying the right source of calcium at the right time. Therefore, growers should make sure their product of choice offers a plant-available source of calcium.

“Many growers apply liming materials to the soil, however, they won’t provide plant-available calcium to the crop and therefore it won’t provide sufficient supply to meet the demand,” Mr Thacker pointed out. “Calcium nitrate, such as YaraLiva Tropicote, provides soluble calcium that is plant-available, unlike the liming materials.”

He also suggested saving some nitrogen from the seedbed application to use for the calcium nitrate dressing, which provides the potato crop with the right soluble calcium.

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