Potato News from United Kingdom

Plant scientists at the James Hutton Institute are studying the evolution of late blight in potato by working with industry and research partners to track the distribution and diversity of dominant clones in Europe in 2020

Potato Processor Lamb Weston's British Chip (Fries) 'The Dukes of Chippingdom', has picked up the Silver Award for the Best New Side of Plate/Ingredient Foodservice Product in the 2020 – 2021 British Frozen Awards.

The British potato industry remains in a state of great uncertainty and at significant risk of crop wastage and economic failure as a result of minimal progress on the availability of suitable sprout suppression chemistry.

HMRC has now released trade data covering up to the end of February 2021. In January, after the end of the transition period to leave the European Union (EU), we saw some teething issues in exports. Did these continue into February?

While an official opening might not be possible, the team at GRIMME UK’s new £3m depot have still found a way to celebrate - supplying the 2000th GRIMME de-stoner to one of the country’s leading vegetable growers.

The fresh vegetable industry in Europe and the United Kingdom is undergoing rapid and exciting change at present says Jason Gerrie, General Manager of Wyma Europe and Wyma UK.

Tim, currently Chief Operating Officer of the Food and Drink Federation (FDF), will take up his position at the Stoneleigh-based levy board on 31 August 2021, replacing Jane King. During the intervening period, the interim AHDB CEO will be Ken Boyns, AHDB Chief Finance, and Operations Officer.

McCain Foods’ new Flavour Maker retail line in the United Kingdom features three offerings launched 'in response to the popularity of flavored fries in restaurants and the casual dining sector.'

Storing potatoes long-term is challenging, especially so if you rely on ambient ventilation. In the UK it is seldom possible to hold crops at optimum temperature in ambient stores beyond early May. Can refrigeration help?

A ballot to decide the future of the AHDB Potato levy has concluded and the voting report has been passed to Ministers for a decision on what happens next.

Planting a Green Headland on uncropped areas around potato and field vegetable crops can capture nutrients worth £200/ha over the growing season.

As the first month of import and export data of potatoes and potato products after Brexit is in, the AHDB takes a closer look at the data and what they could mean. Across all potato product categories recorded, UK imports and exports have fallen from December with figures at the lowest reported this marketing season.

UK Potato chips manufacturer Kent Crisps is staying true to their signature approach of working with Kent producers to create classic flavours with a local twist: their latest flavour - Lamb and Rosemary - is made using grass fed Romney lamb from Kent Shepherd.

Lamb Weston teams up with The Sausage Man to inspire operators with innovative, celebratory dishes for the coming summer months. And Chef Philli Armitage-Mattin has joined the two companies to help kick-off the collaboration in style!

New research to tackle the growing scourge of Potato Cyst Nematode (PCN) has been identified by a specialist Scottish Government working group.

The harvest of the famous Jersey Royal potato has started on the island, the initial volumes are small and are sold via wholesale markets in London and Southampton, before moving across the rest of the United Kingdom.

A move to cut down on food waste by selling unwashed potatoes – and in doing so potentially double their shelf-life - is being launched by Tesco.

The joint venture behind Mackie’s Crisps is investing £750,000 (just over 1 million USD) in a new production facility to scale up production of a new snack brand.