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Stop the spudpocalypse campaign

P

Philip d

Well-known Member
The PEI spud ban is still looming over the heads of hundreds of producers across PEI. Many but not all potato growers are 100% processing contracted growers for Cavendish farms and those growers are mostly unaffected. There are also dozens of seed growers that are greatly affected because they are unable to sell their seed off of PEI currently even within Canada. There are also dozens more growers that are unable to sell their potatoes off PEI for chip markets and table stock abroad including USA. There was potato wart found in 2 fields in the central part of PEI and the potato board maintains that all protocols have been taken to isolate the affected area and that all obligations to satisfy the CFIA and USDA have been documented and met but yet the ban continues. Anyone in the US who may have noticed selection and availability of bags of your favourite brand of potatoes is way down and prices are way up it has nothing to do with c who must not be named , its politics at play. A social media campaign has been launched in Massachusetts to inform consumers of whats going on. Just passing along the info. To keep it tractor related most potato growers have many tractors almost all built in the USA well over 200hp some over 500hp and they have huge tractor payments.
Stop the spudpocalypse campaign
 
Won't really affect me I rarely eat junk food like potato chips and mostly eat the potatoes I grow in my garden,with less potatoes maybe we'll all lose a few pounds.
 
How is a campaign aimed at US consumers going to help when it is the Canadian government who has blocked the exports? As far as I'm aware the US has not stopped the import of these. As you state, the obligations to satisfy the USDA have been met.
 
It was imposed by the CFIA first because the USDA implied they would for an uncertain amount of time if CFIA didnt act first. Thats what our government is telling us anyhow
 
...and this wart disease, just because they only found it in two fields, does not mean that was the ONLY place it was present. After word gets out, some/many/all other farmers who find it are going to pretend they didn't see it.
 
Did our potatoes back when we were kids have warts and we ate them anyway? I think I've seen lots of misformed potatoes with lumps on growing up and it didn't kill me so bring on the potato wart, I don't care.
 
Potatoes can make great feed for cattle and hogs. I have been aware of the plight of the PEI potato growers. I never buy PEI potatoes, and they are not often available here in Ontario anyway. Lots of potato growers within a few hours drive of my home here in South Central Ontario.
cvphoto115258.jpg

I buy potatoes in 50lb bags, and as you can see by the photo, these are nice large potatoes perfect for baking. I can get these for $17.00 per bag all year around. I used to grow my own potatoes before we moved onto this farm, and tried here, but the heavy clay dirt isnt very potato friendly. So I just buy them. I find the potatoes in the 5 and 10 pound bags are usually small, not suitable for baking, and a drag to try to peel. This bag of Potatoes came from just east of Ottawa, a town called Curran ,Ontario..
 
Haha yes they make great cattle feed especially for beef, few loader fulls into the tmr and cattle love em!
 
Americans only learn American geography in school. We are expected to know the names of all the Canadian provinces and provincial capitals , as well as the names of all of the states in the USA , their state capitals and where they are located on the map. I always marveled at how the smallest states, got the largest names . Like New Hampshire , Connecticut, and Massachusetts, while large states with plenty of room to write the state name on your 7th grade test paper map. Like Texas, Utah , Ohio, Idaho and Iowa, got such short names. Always fun looking back on school days, and glad to not still be there.
 
Anyways my good friends Im not here to argue why theyre in a mess just passing on the story lol got to keep my nose in the books!
 
Price sheet from the local Fruit Exchange here in Michigan came yesterday in the mail. The price for seed potatoes 50# bags, fresh market varieties such as Red Norland, Red Pontiac, Kennebec and Yukon Gold for this year, are up 20-25% from a year ago. A size or B size are the same priced at $28.75 per bag if you order before January 28th, otherwise the price goes to $31.25 per 50# bag. $62.50 per cwt. Wow....
 
It's not that we Americans are ignorant of Canadian geography. It's more like we wonder how you survive the temperatures and the mosquitos. Aren't the mosquitos as big as birds up there?

Either that or we are angry that you wouldn't let us invade you back in the day...that's my story and I'm sticking to it. LOL
 
I was shocked when I found our kids were not taught geography in school (in the 90s and 00s). I was taught geography and enjoyed it. Of course, some overseas countries now have different names, and I find myself not able to remember some of our own state capitols anymore, but I'm old and probably won't be traveling as much as I once hoped. Mark.
 
Even on loamy soil the topsoil layer needs to be at least 10-12 inches deep which most soils around me are not.
 
Sounds just like here, except that we do know how long a yard and a mile is. A yard is from here to over there and a mile is down the road a ways.

Our wrenches don't fit either, especially after we've rounded the head off some.

Geese live year round on my neighbors pond and in my other neighbors corn fields.
 
Bruce .... I remember having to know the provinces, territories, and capitals as well as map ID them back in school. Don't remember much emphasis on US states and capitals at all from my school days up here. I do remember learning the correlation between our conservatives and liberals with regards to the nnalert and nnalert down south. And then trying to remember that our party colours (Canadian spelling)for right and left wingers were opposite to the Americans. All I remembered is that the Canadiens wore red sweaters and the Maple Leafs wear blue .... ha!

Which reminds me .... the term 'jersey' has taken over Canada unfortunately .... our hockey players always wore SWEATERS (not jerseys) and for me they still do. Jerseys are cows I think are they not? And we head off to the dressing room, not the locker room. That's for football and basketball guys, not hockey players.
 
I'll play the devil's advocate.

Philip, you make it sound like the Canadian potato farmers don't care how much the disease spreads so long as they continue to make money. I'm sure that is absolutely not the case, but that is the perception people get if producers try to export infected potatoes. The US Department of Agriculture bungled the Mad Cow Disease outbreak and twenty years later it still affects out exports and the world's perception of the safety of American beef.

Wouldn't it be more effective to ask the Canadian Government or Agriculture Department or create a fund amount potato growers to provide some compensation to the farmers who work to contain the outbreak rather than simply turn a blind eye to it and allow it to spread to the other Providences and to you export customers? A self imposed ban is viewed much more favorably than if the consumers have to impose it after an outbreak.
 
If the potatoes cant be transported off PEI as raw potatoes, maybe someone needs to build a processor that makes chips or fries from them, or something else (vodka)?
 
ss55
I gave the same response as you last time Philip brought up this subject.
Seemed kind of redundant to repeat it this time.
But I agree with your statement 100 percent.

It's the way the world works.
If a disease is spotted in an area you shut down the border to try and stop the spread.
Especially if your country does not have the disease like is the case here.
I'm sure Canada would do the same thing if the shoe was on the other foot.
And while it may sound cruel the fact you have millions of pounds of disease free potatoes that came from the same area as the disease is not our fault or problem.
 
You guys are both correct there and thats what will ultimately happen. It happened in 2001, the government bought up all the unmarketable potatoes and they were all dumped in fields and put through snow blowers. I think the provincial government is just trying to get them to market instead of forking out many millions maybe several hundred million to have them destroyed. The fry processing capacity here is maxed out you can only sell so many bags of cholesterol. There are some here being washed and going out west to processing out there. It will help a bit.
 
For those of you who have never had the opportunity to visit PEI (Prince Edward Island) it is one of the best kept secrets of the Country of Canada. Many beautiful modern farms with quaint fishing villages about every ten miles along the coast. A very worth while destination for a wonderful vacation along with Nova Scotia. A guaranteed education on the practice of potatoe farming. Also not far is the area of the greatest tidal change at the Bay of Fundy
and the artist colony of Peggys Cove.
 
I agree with you 100%. Plus the people there are about the friendliest I have ever met. I stayed in Parrsboro Nova Scotia for a few months back in the 80's, while we where revamping the sawmill there. Stayed at a place outside of town that had cottages right on the bay. To make a long story short we learned about the high tide you mentioned the hard way! The first day we were there myself and a couple other fellows decided we would take a walk along the water. Well we walked quite a pc. out around some rocks etc. finally decided we should be turning around and heading back, but the tide had started to come in and we could not get back. The spot we were in was basically cliffs so we tryed to go the other way so we could get up off the beach. No go, we were basically trapped and had to climb the rocks to get outa there! Bout as close to mountain climbing as I would want to get!
Incidentally with a handle of Tom OConner I am surprised you didnt comment on the link I posted below of Bud the Spud!
 
Stompin Tom said it all. Sure felt bad when he passed away. He was a great entertainer. When we were on PEI we stayed at a place called Bay of Good Fortune on the East tip of the island. Absolutely beautiful. You are so right about the friendliest people. Many Americans will never forget all the eastern Canadiens who welcomed so many on 9-11-2001 when 35 airliners crossing the atlantic were ordered to land at Halifax. People drove to the airport and took those passengers to their home for several days. Thank You Canadiens. We shall be forever grateful. Tom OConnor
 
Heh dont forget about Gander as well. I think it was 38 planes and around 7000 people that landed there on 9/11. Given the circumstances, I would like to think you would get a similar reception anywhere in the world, but I'm not too sure about that.
 
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