News on Potato Defects and Diseases

The potato feeds over a billion people but faces disease and limited diversity. Investing in research, breeding, and farmer support is vital to improve resilience and productivity, ensuring it remains a key staple for global food security.

Join the James Hutton Institute's webinar on May 30, International Day of Potato, to explore UK potato production challenges and innovations in breeding, sustainability, AI tools, and pest control. Hosted by NPIC and Professor Ingo Hein.

El país se haya en una lucha interna por la medida que amplia la importación de papa desde Estados Unidos. Ya no solo será papa para industria, sino ahora también fresca. Los productores se oponen.

Simon Fraher is a highly skilled vegetable breeder finishing his doctorate this spring semester with NC State University’s Sweetpotato and Potato Breeding and Genetics Programs.

Pro Farm Group introduces ARINO™ insecticide/ nematicide, for the management of nematodes and wireworms in potatoes, onions and other bulb and tuberous vegetables. 

El II Encuentro Agroprofesional de la Patata ha reunido a más de un centenar de agricultores y técnicos para debatir sobre el estado actual del cultivo, las amenazas sanitarias y los retos de la sostenibilidad agraria.

GB Potatoes funds the FAB project for 3 years, boosting UK efforts to monitor and combat potato late blight. Led by James Hutton Institute, FAB provides vital real-time insights on blight strains and resistance, strengthening sector resilience.

En España, ante la imposibilidad de entrar al campo con maquinaria por suelos anegados, el gobierno permitió excepcionalmente tratamientos aéreos sobre cultivos de patata en tres municipios de Sevilla.

A research team has decoded the genome of historic potato cultivars and used this resource to develop an efficient method for analysis of hundreds of additional potato genomes.

Jornada de campo en la provincia de Tucumán con el fin de informar y prevenir sobre la incidencia de nematodos en los cultivos de papa.

The 2025 Hutchinsons Potato Trials Results Day at Worth Farms, Lincolnshire, showcased key field trials and research to help tackle major potato industry challenges, including PCN, herbicide safety, wireworm, catch crops, blight, and Alternaria.

Fera Science’s Enigma I project is advancing to its second phase, focusing on sustainable wireworm control. Agri-food organizations are invited to join as co-funding partners for tailored research and practical solutions.

Emerald Research Ltd (ERL) and a leading potato grower in South West England have won an eighteen-month Innovate UK project to tackle the ever-growing problem of wireworm damage in potatoes.

Greenvale’s Golden Kings launched ‘Move Over Maris’ with Great British Chefs to promote climate-friendly, high-yielding potatoes needing less irrigation and pest control, urging consumers to switch varieties.

Agriculture is growing in Canada’s North with new collaborations and technologies. AAFC scientist Dr. Julia Wheeler led research on season extension for potatoes and green beans in northern communities. The study focused on soil health, pest management, and improving food security.

The dwindling availability of insecticide seed treatment and nematicides has paved the way for pest control using entomopathogenic nematodes.

Andy Diercks, a fourth-generation potato farmer from the small village of Coloma in central Wisconsin, is blunt about the difficult realities facing family-owned farms today.

Potato farming in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), Philippines, spans 11,000 hectares but struggles with limited high-quality seed potatoes. At the World Potato Congress (WPC) 2024 in Adelaide, Australia, experts highlighted Apical Rooted Cuttings (ARC) as a solution to improve yields.