News on Research from Europe

Stories about large losses in harvest in the Belgian sector due to the heavy rainfall are circulating in various media. But Romain Cools of Belgapom says it is too early to come up with a percentage.

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.

Ian Wright CBE, Director General at the Food and Drink Federation, the voice of the UK's largest manufacturing sector - food and drink, responds to the vote to leave in the UK's EU Referendum.

The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board’s Chief Executive, Jane King, comments on the Brexit vote earlier today.

The University of Southern Denmark is developing an ecodrone that will combat pests in completely new ways.

On World Environment Day (June 5), potato breeding company HZPC highlighted the benefits of breeding on yield, carbon footprint and water use.

Europatat appoints a new board, including Jos Muyshondt as President, Domenico Citterio as vice-president and Gilles Fontaine as treasurer.

A team of scientists from The Sainsbury Laboratory (TSL) and The Genome Analysis Centre (TGAC) have developed a new method to accelerate isolation of plant disease resistance genes and - using their new method - a brand new source of blight resistance genes in Solanum americanum, a wild relative of the potato.

Avebe and Groningen University are jointly looking into the possibility of housing the Avebe Innovation Centre at the Zernike Campus in the city of Groningen.

KWS is selling its conventional seed potato business to Stet Holland B.V. An agreement to that effect was signed yesterday. The transaction is expected to be completed by mid-2016.

Elveden Farms, a West Suffolk estate is set to become a Regional Research & Demonstration Hub for potato growers and suppliers, thanks to funding from the Eastern Agri-Tech Growth Initiative.

Europatat and Freshfel Europe will jointly celebrate their first common annual meeting on 2 June 2016 in Brussels.

Research to develop potatoes with sustainable resistance against phytophthora via genetic modification with genes from wild potatoes and good resistance management ended with the publication of the scientific results. The approach resulted in potato plants which require 80% less chemical control.

The remarkable growth of the Belgian potato-processing sector in the past few decades has continued in 2015.

“Harnessing the power of leading bloggers and vloggers, as well as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube channels will enable us [AHDB Potatoes] to reach more consumers and engage with them on a more regular and impactful basis. As research shows, this is clearly the way forward.”

In the United Kingdom, AHDB Potatoes has announced that it is searching for the first farmer host for its new Scottish Strategic Potato (SPot) Farm.

In response to market demand, ILAPAK has enlarged its offering beyond its core flow wrapping and bagging capabilities to provide turn-key solutions that span feeding through to final packaging.

25 suppliers of Belgian potatoes, fruits, vegetables and fruit trees welcome you in Berlin at the VLAM booth at Fruit Logistica.