Potato Growers of Alberta: Mid-term Crop Report

Posted on September 19, 2024 by Sunny South News

By Nerissa McNaughton
Southern Alberta Newspapers

The Potato Growers of Alberta (PGA) was established in 1966 to serve as the voice of the Alberta potato industry. It was created by potato farmers to promote collaboration among growers and trade members, focusing on research, advertising, promotions, and communications to build a successful potato industry in the province. The organization has evolved over the years, commemorating its history with a book celebrating its 50th anniversary, which includes stories, statistics, and recipes from past and present growers.

The significance and importance of Alberta’s potato crops cannot be understated. According to Bayer Crop Science Canada, in 2023, Alberta contributed 25 per cent of Canada’s potato yield, which was even more than Manitoba and Prince Edward Island.

How are the crops looking this season? Terence M. Hochstein, PGA Executive Director, shares the following:

“The Alberta potato industry has been harvesting the 2024 crop since the last week of July. To date this has mostly been chipping acres direct to plant. The quality has been excellent, and the yields have been about average given the time of year.”

He continues, “On the processing side, two of the three fry plants have been digging field direct varieties for about three weeks now, with decent yields but a somewhat smaller profile compared to other years. Quality has been good. Storage crop fry varieties will start to be dug sometime next week depending on the weather. When daytime temperatures and overnight lows remain high then we have to shut down at midday because the tuber temperatures get too high for storage. The seed industry in central and northern Alberta is still a few weeks away from the start of their harvest. Overall it appears that the crop for 2024 will fall in line with our five-year average.”

Did you know that Alberta grows 10 different kinds of potatoes, including ones with fun names like Baby Boomer and Gold Rush? There is a detailed explanation about each variety on the PGA website, along with their best cooking methods. 

For a fun twist on leftover mashed potatoes, try potato noodles! PGA has a great recipe for them: https://www.albertapotatoes.ca/potato-noodles.

No matter how you like your spuds, they are a vital and important crop for Alberta. Enjoy them while thinking about the farmers that plant, cultivate, and harvest the crop each year.