Tomorrow marks the return of Potatoes in Practice (PiP), the UK’s largest annual field event for the industry.
The Scotsman reports that the event offers growers the opportunity to catch up on the latest in new varieties and recent developments, as well as a platform to discuss the direction and future funding of research in the sector.
Taking place at the James Hutton Institute’s Balruddery Farm outside Dundee, this year’s PiP will be the first not to have the active participation and support of AHDB Potatoes, the levy-payer funded organisation which commissioned research and development for the sector as well as carrying out a promotion and marketing brief.
Following the levy payers’ ‘No’ vote on continued representation of the sector, the organisation’s potato work is being wound down.
Archie Gibson, executive director of Agrico UK Ltd, said that the ‘No’ vote had exposed the industry’s vulnerabilities on the R&D front, and stated that PiP represented a golden opportunity for the industry to come together to discuss some of the major issues facing the sector.
As for Brexit, Gibson said the European Commission cast the UK adrift without the possibility of exporting to EU member states from 1 January 2021.
