Work Package 8 - Knowledge Exchange and Communications

Work Package Lead: Philip Burgess (scottishpotatoes.org)

Aim

To create and deliver a national programme of Knowledge Exchange (KE) to stakeholders within relevant supply chains which is aimed at protecting the land base for future generations.

Background

Seed potato production relies upon the availability of land free from PCN. However, the frequency of detection in land tested before seed potatoes has increased and forecasts indicate that without action the seed industry could become unsustainable in just 25 years. For table potato growers the pesticides available to control PCN have diminished and new approaches are necessary. This WP aims to bring together all Work Package strands to ensure the sector has the knowledge and tools necessary to a sustainable future.

Action

This WP will establish a baseline understanding of the current situation and develop a national strategy with measurable KPI’s that will require delivery to achieve targets. Creating a communication programme that will deliver focused and consistent messages to stakeholder groups is also planned for this WP. This includes factsheets, this website, grower groups and industry events.

The outputs from other work packages will be integrated into the KE programme.

Publications

The Estimated Economic Contribution of Scotland's Seed and Ware Potato Sectors

Authors: Steven Thomson
March 2024

This report is part of Work Package 1: Economic Contribution of the Scottish Government funded research project: Delivering a sustainable potato industry for Scotland through management of Potato cyst nematode (PCN). As part of this workstream this report aims to provide new insights into the economic contribution that the Scottish potato sector makes beyond the often cited farmgate value of potato production. This report provides a statistical overview of this concentrated and highly regulated sector, including data on consumption, exports, imports, production, varieties, seed and ware sector – alongside estimates of economic contribution.

The Barnyards field trial 2022 report - A field trial investigating the resistance and tolerance characteristics of eleven potato varieties to Globodera pallida in Scotland

August 2023

In 2022 a field trial was established which aimed to provide information on the integrated control of Globodera pallida. This report publishes the results of the field trial planted at Barnyards Farm on 02/05/2022 - a location with a moderate-high PCN population. The trial consisted of 11 potato varieties (Cara, Maris Peer, Elland, Innovator, Eurostar, Buster, Amanda, Karelia, Cinderella, Lanorma, and Tyson) with varying levels of resistance to both G. Pallida and GRostochiensis (Table 1). Replicates of each variety were treated with either Nemathorin 10G (30 kg/ha, a.i. Fosthiazate) or left untreated.