Potato News from Oceania

The weather might be warming up [well, in Australia that is, not here in Canada...PP] but that isn’t stopping Aussie consumers tucking in to a hearty serve of mashed potato, according to the latest wave of the industry-funded Potato Tracker project.

There's a major potato shortage in New Zealand and it's big enough that it's forced chip producers to temporarily stop production in the countdown to Christmas.

The Ministry of Agriculture of Fiji has plans to source potato seed materials for the Red Pontiac variety from Australia as it continues its efforts to boost local production.

The South Australian Government is partnering with Potatoes South Australia to gain export access and expand the state’s seed and fresh potato industry within the growing international markets of Thailand and Malaysia.

Potatoes New Zealand chief executive Champak Mehta said potato growers around the country were reporting that weather conditions were causing a bit a of a harvesting headache - especially getting the delicate new season's potatoes out of the ground safely

AUSPACK 2015 will feature an impressive list of processing machinery exhibitors from all over the world.

The first wave of results from the Australian industry-funded Potato Tracker project have been released, shedding encouraging new light on purchase triggers and consumption habits relating to fresh potatoes.

AUSVEG CEO Mr Richard Mulcahy has welcomed this afternoon’s announcement by the Federal Agriculture Minister, The Hon. Barnaby Joyce MP, of the composition of the Board that will head up the new research and development body for horticulture.

The tna robag® Auto-splice system, the latest innovation for tna’s leading robag® range, automatically splices film, increasing packaging efficiency and maximising product throughput by reducing the need for manual intervention.

New Zealand Potato production in 2013, at 525,000 metric tons, was marginally (5%) ahead of 2012 production. t is likely planted areas in 2014 will be similar to 2013, with production in the range of 500,000 to 550,000MT.

Two of South Australia's biggest potato growers are fighting the State Government in court over changes to their water allocations.

Simplot Australia implements SaaS Consumer Goods Sales Force solution StayinFront EdgeCG® for all its Sales Channels

Australian potato growers are set to gain fresh insights into how consumers view their products as part of a new market research project that has started this month.

Potatoes South Australia chief executive Robbie Davis says potatoes are widely considered fattening, high in bad carbohydrates, inconvenient and boring. She calls for a national image campaign.

Administrators of the New South Wales potato chip business Potato Magic Australia recommend winding the company up and placing it into liquidation.

About 20 food manufacturing workers at the McCain Foods New Zealand, Hastings plant are expected to lose their jobs. The plant announced to workers a proposal to reduce year-round production of TV dinners to just 10 days per year.

Crop management and protection practices that help prevent soil-borne diseases in potato crops will be the key focus of a special potato research and development (R&D) workshop to be held in Berrigan, NSW, Australia

Yum Tasmania Gourmet Potatoes are now being used by top chefs and home cooks across Australia and overseas to add colour to their dishes