French fries manufacturer Lamb Weston will process potatoes from Prince Edward Island about 3.500 kilometers away, also in Canada, at the production location in Taber in the Canadian province of Alberta. Much of the island's potato crop is normally exported to the US. That is not possible this year because the US has closed the border to potatoes from the area due to the discovery of the wart disease in Prince Edward Island.
In order to find a destination for the potatoes, Terry Curley of Monaghan Farms, who is involved in the working group for growers affected by the quarantine, has signed a deal with Lamb Weston, reports the Canadian news site CBC. "All the potatoes that leave Prince Edward Island help, there's no doubt about that," Curley said at CBC. "This deal concerns approximately seven hundred truckloads of potatoes. That is less than 10% of the potatoes we have to get rid of. The US is the major sales market." The only reason that it is possible to sell the potatoes in the western provinces is the extreme drought last season in western Canada and the US. This means there is room for extra potatoes, according to Curley.
The problem remains major
The potatoes will be transported through Canada by truck in the winter. Due to the risk of frost damage, cheaper transport by train is currently not an option. Curley expects four to five loads to be shipped to Taber daily through June. The deal with Lamb Weston is a bright spot for chip potatoes. For table potato growers and the extensive seed potato sector in Prince Edward Island, the problems remain as great as ever and a large part of the potato harvest will probably still have to be destroyed. The Prince Edward Island Potato Board estimates the value of the potatoes hanging above the market due to the export ban at 120 million Canadian dollars.