If there’s one thing potato plants don’t like, it’s heat. If the temperature is too high, potato plants form significantly lower numbers of tubers or sometimes none at all. Biochemists at FAU have now discovered the reason why.

After spending 2018 opening the doors to new markets for British seed potatoes, the AHDB Exports team will focus in 2019 on strengthening relationships with existing markets.

Scientists at The James Hutton Institute say discovery could help breed new colourful and improved potato varieties

Shoppers in the United Kingdom bought 1.4 per cent more fresh potatoes this year compared to last year and 3 per cent more than in 2015, new data shows.

James Hutton Limited, has entered into a five-year agreement with Technico Agri Sciences, a subsidiary of Indian company ITC Limited, to provide 16 potato varieties and 600 clones to be trialled and tested in India.

Research at the James Hutton Institute has identified genetic variations which can help protect potato crop yields at high temperature, potentially providing potato breeders with a valuable tool in their quest to create varieties resilient to heat stress

Based on extensive trials (two years, three separate farms, ten potato varieties) in a joint effort of AHDB, James Hutton Ltd, SASA and Seeds2B Africa (part of the Syngenta Foundation) three GB potato varieties have been recommended for release in Kenya.

The EuroBlight project is examining the ongoing evolution of the potato late blight pathogen (Phytophthora infestans). In 2017, almost 1500 samples from 16 countries in Europe were genotyped. The results indicate that new clones continue to spread.

The Chinese Government and leading potato company, Xisen Potato Group have committed £3 million to a collaboration with James Hutton Limited (JHL) to breed new varieties and research resistance to pests and diseases, tuber storage and potato processing.