Prevenir la actividad de una enzima clave in las papas podría ayudar a aumentar su calidad por medio de reducir la acumulación de azúcares que ocurre cuando las papas se almacenan en frío, según científicos del Servicio de Investigación Agrícola (ARS)....

Preventing activity of a key enzyme in potatoes could help boost potato quality by putting an end to cold-induced sweetening, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists.

USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS) announced it has restored half of the FY 2012 potato research funding it originally cut as a way to meet its obligated savings requirements.

To potato breeders in the Pacific Northwest, the annual Tri-State Tour is akin to Christmas morning, explained Brian Charlton, with Oregon State University's Klamath Basin Research & Extension Center.

Potato breeder Rich Novy says growers shouldn't read too much into the fact that a promising new variety he helped develop, Palisade Russet, hasn't made it into many fields yet.

Officials with the U.S. Department of Agriculture say a microscopic parasite that damages potato crops has been found in three more eastern Idaho fields, bringing the number of infected fields to 15.

Barcodes may bring to mind the sales tags and scanners found in supermarkets and other stores. But U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists are using 'DNA barcodes'to monitor insects that damage crops as diverse as wheat, barley and potatoes, and to make pest management decisions.

One year, it's the potato tuber worm;another year, it's the beet leafhopper.

President Obama's budget proposal for Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 proposes cutting $700 million in the USDA's spending levels.The amount represents a 3 percent cut from FY 2012 USDA spending levels.