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UK retailer Morrisons has acquired the Carnoustie potato packing plant from Farmcare in a deal which will strengthen the supply of Scottish tubers to the supermarket chain.

Potato supplier Preva Produce, located in Norfolk, United Kingdom, is up for sale after 20 jobs were lost when cash pressures led to suspension of packing operation

After three years in office, Fiona Fell has announced she will stand down as an AHDB Board Member and Chair of the AHDB Potato Sector Board at the end of her term in office.

Potato Company Branston in the United Kingdom says it will see demand for potatoes double from 150 to 300 tonnes in the week before Christmas.

AHDB Potatoes' first provisional estimate of total production in Great Britain for the 2016 crop year is 5.22 million tonnes, down 5% from 2015. Average yields for GB are estimated at just under 45 tonnes/ha, down 8% on last year.

AHDB Potatoes has pledged to work closely with the seed potato sector and Scottish Government to ensure that the industry maintains a low level of the bacterial disease blackleg.

Jim Cruickshank OBE, one of the most well respected seed producers in the UK, is this year’s winner of the British Potato Industry Award, organised by AHDB Potatoes.

Currency and supply dynamics are affecting the relative price of British processing potatoes compared to supplies from Belgium and the Netherlands.

Italian seasonal new potatoes will be launched into Tesco this autumn on the back of new research showing that consumers want freshly harvested new potatoes all year round.

Branston, one of the biggest potato suppliers in the United Kingdom, has officially opened its £5 million prepared potato factory extension in partnership with Tesco.

AHDB Potatoes will use this year’s Seed Industry Event on 3 November to review the industry’s current approach to controlling blackleg. The biennial conference, held this year in St Andrews, will also provide growers with an insight into the potential impact of Brexit, and scope out the potato market, both at home and abroad.

AHDB Potatoes has produced provisional estimates of planted areas by variety for Great Britain for 2016.

Following the end of a significant packing contract, UK Potato Packer Farmcare is to embark on a period of consultation with 90 staff at its Carnoustie location.

AHDB Potatoes’ Next Generation educational programme continued to explore GB’s diverse potato industry with a processing-focussed, whole supply chain day at McCain GB Foods Ltd Headquarters in Scarborough recently.

Work to make potatoes more nutritious by including nanoparticles in the fertilizer formulation is proving promising, according to the AHDB-funded researcher Karen Davies

McCain Foods GB has recognised Park Farm near Leominister for its exceptional achievements over the potato crop year. Bill and Nicky Smith, of Park Farm, have received the Southern Champion Grower Award from popular chip brand McCain.

UK Supermarket chain Tesco has announced it will issue contracts worth £12 million over three years to help support British Agriculture, and become the first retailer in the UK to introduce new long term contracts for potato growers and packers.

Waste from potato crops could be ‘recycled’ into personal care products such as medical gels and beauty creams – thanks to a new University of East Anglia (UEA) research project.