New National Potato Wart Response Plan ready for 2025 crop

A farmer works a potato field in North Tryon, Prince Edward Island on Thursday, July 13, 2000. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan (ANDREW VAUGHAN/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

A new National Potato Wart Response Plan is ready to take effect with the 2025 potato crop.

Potato wart is a soil-borne fungus, regulated under the Plant Protection Act and Regulations, that disfigures potatoes and reduces crop yields.

The fungus can spread through the movement of soil, farm equipment, and potatoes from fields that have potato wart, according to a news release from Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).

CFIA worked with the Canadian Potato Council, the Prince Edward Island Potato Board, and the Province of Prince Edward Island to develop the new plan.

“Input from these stakeholders has helped make the final response plan inclusive of information and expertise from the potato sector including growers and grower associations, and trading partners,” reads a news release from CFIA.

The plan outlines the necessary steps that must be taken when a confirmed case of potato wart has been detected in Canada, other than Newfoundland and Labrador.

The new measures include:

• Preventive Control Plans: Users of restricted fields must develop and implement preventive control plans to identify and manage risks associated with potato wart.
• Seed Potato Certification: Certification will no longer be available for seed potatoes grown in restricted fields, as seed potatoes are a significant risk for spreading the disease.
• Soil sampling and Analysis: Additional soil sampling and analysis is required before removing potato wart phytosanitary measures from restricted fields.

“The new National Potato Wart Response Plan is a strong step forward. It’s all about pulling together the latest science with input from growers and the potato industry to make sure we help prevent the spread of this terrible pest and protect the sector, so Canada can continue to be a reliable supplier of top-quality potatoes,” said Lawrence MacAulay, the federal minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, in the news release.

The new plan replaces the Potato Wart Domestic Long-term Management Plan. CFIA says the agency has met with potato growers in P.E.I. to review it.

“Fields in P.E.I. already under restriction will be assigned an equivalent status under the new response plan,” reads the release.

“This will be based on the steps growers and/or landowners have already completed toward a field’s release from restrictions under the 2009 management plan.”

CFIA says the new response plan is one of several measures used to manage and prevent the spread of potato wart, which minimizes the potential impact on market access for Canada’s potatoes.