By Kerry Hughes. Alex McDonald Ltd (Almac) was established in 1941 and celebrates 80 years this year. Although always trading in potatoes it wasn’t until the 1970’s that Alex’s sons Colin and Alistair established the Pathogen Tested (PT) Seed Potato Scheme in a joint venture with the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) and…
This World Potato Market article is republished with permission from Cedric Porter , Editor and Chief of the WPM report. He wrote this for the World Potato Congress in response to an EAT-Lancet report from, which can be found here https://eatforum.org/eat-lancet-commission/eat-lancet-commission-summary-report/ The key takeaway for NZ Potato Industry is that potatoes will play a major…
Potato rosti from Niki Bezzant This is a classic brunch dish; often served topped with eggs or smoked salmon (or both). It’s super simple with just one ingredient (beautiful NZ potatoes), and it’s easy to make at home. A recipe is not really necessary, so here it is in bullet-point form. Choose waxy or boiling…
We were lucky enough to successfully run a Covid-ready event in Ashburton on Friday the 13th August. We are relieved we kept the delegate registrations capped at 100, in order to mitigate the risk of becoming a super-spreader event. Sadly Level 4 lockdown was called before we made it to Pukekohe, however read on to…
NGĀ KAITIAKI O NGĀ TAEWA – GUARDIANS OF THE POTATOES By Gemma Carroll. This winter Potatoes New Zealand teamed up with Eat New Zealand for the Feast Matariki campaign by sponsoring The Great Taewa Hunt. We envisaged connecting with local communities and smaller growers who are kaitiaki for the taonga that is Māori potatoes. Taewa…
Understanding soil nitrogen Soils in New Zealand typically contain between 5000 and 9000 kg of total nitrogen (N) per hectare in the top 30 cm. Most (97-99 %) of the total soil N exists as a component of soil organic matter called the organic nitrogen fraction(included as part of Total N in Figure 1), which includes…
by Gemma Carroll (Potatoes New Zealand) Potatoes NZ made the most of their 2021 Field Walk in the Horowhenua District this March by including a visit to Mingiroa Farm, tucked away in the nearby Rangitikei District. Mingiroa is a small farm on rolling hills, with pockets of native bush, the Rangitikei river nearby, a herd…
Robust models mean the best farmer-facing tools. Sustainable Vegetable Systems (SVS) monthly update: improving the modelling via Workstream 3 and extension activities in Workstream 4. Sustainable Vegetable Systems is a four-year, $7.5 million project, focused on reducing the environmental impact of intensive growing of potatoes, onions, brassicas and leafy greens. It involves research work to…
By Glenys Christian for NZ Grower magazine. Ron Gall, the former business manager of Potatoes New Zealand, has been remembered as putting the industry on the world stage during his 21-year contribution. He passed away in May. Former work colleagues and growers paid tribute to him as a champion of the potato industry who played…
Sustainable Vegetable Systems (SVS) monthly update: improving the modelling via Workstream 3 and extension activities in Workstream 4. Sustainable Vegetable Systems is a four-year, $7.5 million project, focused on reducing the environmental impact of intensive growing of potatoes, onions, brassicas and leafy greens. It involves research work to quantify and model nitrogen leaching and engages…