Levy Consultation
Levy consultation meetings have come to an end. If you didn’t get a chance to attend a meeting please review the key information, levy consultation document and our Industry Strategy & Business Plan. Feedback from the meetings has been reported to the Board of PNZ.
We are progressing favourably towards achieving our 2025 goals (see Chairmans Report), however continued progress is only possible with levy funding. We need you, the growers, to vote YES in the referendum to be able to continue this important work.
Levy Referendum Voting
Voting packs have been both emailed and posted to all members. If you have not received yours please contact vasb@cbgngbrfam.pb.am or phone 0800 399 674 immediately. Please clearly state your company details, email address and postal address so we can check to ensure you are on the list.
Seed Certification
A meeting of the New Zealand Seed Potato Certification Authority (NZSPCA) was held in Ashburton on 11th April. Some points arising from the meeting will result in rule changes for next season. Click here to read full report of meeting.
An updated list of Seed Lines, G3 – G6 2017-18, is out now – click here to download a spreadsheet.
R&D Project Updates
A quarterly update on some of the active research projects is now available. For the latest on all current research projects please visit Research Projects on the Potatoes NZ website.
R&D Update – Potato Bed Architecture
Alex Michel, Sarah Sinton and Steven Dellow from Plant & Food Research (PFR) report on research into varying potato bed architecture to improve crop water use dynamics. Click here to read the full report.
Export Statistics
We will no longer be distributing a separate monthly export statistics newsletter, instead these will be reported in this monthly newsletter. All current and previous exports stats are available on the PNZ website. We post these to the website each week for Fresh and monthly for Processed Exports.
- Fresh potato export report week 16, 2018
- Fresh potato export report week 15, 2018
- Fresh potato export report week 14, 2018
- Fresh potato export report week 13, 2018
- Processed potato export summary – February 2018
- Processed potato export summary – January 2018
Potato Variety Exhibition
Tony Hendrikse and the Eurogrow team invite you to their Potato Variety Exhibition to check out new varieties of potatoes. Complimentary food and refreshments will be served.
- Pukekohe – Wednesday 9th May 10:30am to 12:30pm – more info
- Rakaia – Tuesday 29th May 12:00pm to 2.00pm – more info
HortNZ Leadership Programme
Are you a potential leader in the hort industry? Are you wanting to upskill? If so, PNZ encourages members to apply for the HortNZ Leadership Programme.
Chip Group Update
An engaged group of students from Manukau Institute of Technology (MIT) are now fully equipped with deep-frying skills after recently completing the interactive Chip Group training session. Click here to read the article.
Market Updates
- Diversity of fry sales pushes NZ exports to new highs
- The Fry’s the Limit
- Potato Chat – A magical combination of ingredients
In the news
- Levy consultation – RNZ Morning Rural News – listen (01:40 to 03:00)
- Climate change impact – RNZ Midday Rural News – listen (01:47 to 03:00)
- NZ’s food supply in the face of a changing climate – NZ Herald article
- Barton Rural School pupils grow spuds for families in need – Stuff article
- Waimate farmer donates potatoes for cyclone victims – Stuff article
- Why are you still peeling all those vegetables? – NZ Herald article
- Julie Biuso – Potato Mash – recipe blog
- Julie Biuso – Potato & Eggplant Moussaka – recipe blog
PNZ Social Media Links
Follow us on Social Media to keep up with the latest news.
- Instagram – Potatoes_NZ
- Facebook – Potatoes NZ
- Facebook – The Chip Group
- Twitter – Potatoes NZ
- Twitter – Chris Claridge