The recent discovery of potato wart disease on Prince Edward Island in Canada, and the subsequent embargo on export of potatoes from the province to the rest of Canada and the U.S. made industry headline news the past couple of weeks.
On Dec 2, a leading industry publication, The Packer, published an opinion piece online titled “Simple questions about devastating disease require transparent answers“, authored by Kam Quarles, CEO of the National Potato Council in the U.S. The article references regulatory actions that have been taken in response to the detection of potato wart. Read the article online in The Packer here.
On Dec 3, the editor of The Packer received an open letter from the Canadian Horticultural Council (CHC) and the Canadian Potato Council in response to Mr Quarles’ article, and The Packer published the letter online on Dec 6. The Canadian industry bodies say in its letter that they jointly submit the letter on behalf of potato growers across Canada, noting that Mr Quarles’ article contains “several inaccuracies that we believe need to be addressed.” Read the letter online in The Packer here.
