Potatoes

As provided under the Potato Growers & Potato Packers Act 1984, anyone wishing to grow, pack or grow and pack potatoes for sale is required to register with the Department.

Please note that with effect from 1st August 2021 that in addition to a fee of €19 with each application, it is required that an applicant has obtained and supplies details of their registration as a Food Business Operator. Further information concerning this is provided on Page 1 of the application form.

Application for Registration under Growers & Packers Act

Conditions for the marketing of potatoes

Details of the standards which potatoes must satisfy to be placed for sale are set out in the following document.

Potato Growers Record Book

Registered producers of potatoes are required to maintain records of all activities carried out in respect of the cultivation and sale of potatoes. The attached PDF “Potato Growers Record Book” provides a template format by which such information can be recorded.

Online listing of registered Growers & Packers

In addition to holding the National Register of all growers and Packers provided for in the Potato Growers and Potato Packers Act 1984, the Department also publishes a listing of those Potato Growers and Packers who have consented for their details to be made available publicly. This listing is updated twice annually (March and October) to reflect revisions made in the previous six months.

Legislation

The primary legislation governing the growing and packing of potatoes for sell in Ireland is provided for under the Potato Growers and Potatoes Act 1984 and by implementing Statutory Instruments SI 336 of 1985 and SI 637 of 2001

Potato Growers and Packers Act 1984

S.I. 336 of 1985

SI 637 of 2001

All queries in relation to the above can be sent to potatoonline@agriculture.gov.ie or alternatively, by post to:

2024 – Area of Seed Potato Varieties Entered for Inspection (Ireland)

This booklet gives details of the area of seed potatoes in the Republic of Ireland by variety, area and grade planted. These figures have been derived from applications for certification received by The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine – Crop Policy, Certification and Evaluation Division from growers seeking to have crops certified as Pre-Basic and Basic Seed potatoes.

2024 List of Pre-Basic and Basic Seed Potato Crops inspected for Marketing in Ireland

Application for Soil Sampling and Testing for Potato Cyst Nematode

What soil sampling and testing is

All lands where potatoes for certified seed production are to be planted must be officially sampled and tested and found free of Potato Cyst Nematode (PCN).

This does not include land intended for production of ‘farm saved’ seed potatoes on the grower’s own holding. However, growers are strongly advised to arrange for testing of all land from which it is proposed to keep ‘farm saved’ seed potatoes. For the next growing year the Department will carry out Potato Cyst Nematode testing where a grower submits an application form, subject to a maximum of 15 soil samples per applicant.

Testing fees

There is no fee applied for sampling and testing land that is sown for the production of seed crops certified by the Department, or for land that tests positive for Potato Cyst Nematode.

There is a fee of €25/hectare on additional land exceeding the area planted for seed that is sampled and tested for the presence of Potato Cyst Nematode.

Completed applications should be returned by the date specified on the application form.

A late application fee of €50 will be charged for applications received after that date.

Apply for soil sampling and testing

The Trader Notice and application form below can be used to apply for soil sampling and testing for Potato Cyst Nematode.

The completed form should be forwarded (by post only) to:

Crop Policy, Evaluation and Certification Division

2nd Floor Administration Building,

Backweston Campus,

Celbridge ,

Co Kildare

Queries can be sent by Email: potatoOnline@agriculture.gov.ie

Phone number: +353 (0) 1 505 8792

Requirements for the marketing of seed potatoes

Tops Potato Centre

The Tops Potato Propagation Centre is located in Raphoe, Co. Donegal. The Centre has its own lands for potato propagation as well as glasshouses, polytunnels and a virus testing laboratory.

Pre-Basic Seed Potato Production

The main function of the centre is to produce pre-basic mini-tuber seed for participants in the Department's Seed Potato Certification Scheme. To do this the station must maintain nucleus stocks of healthy and genetically true to type samples of the potato varieties likely to be required for seed and eventually ware potato production. The centre maintains most of the potato varieties grown in the country.

Most countries have formal systems i.e. Seed Certification Schemes which include various production steps where a flush through system is applied to renew seed stocks. The production of pre-basic mini-tuber seed is the first step in the seed renewal process. This seed is certified as being free from potato virus diseases.

The Process of Producing Virus Free Seed

The virus free seed is produced in the laboratory from the sprouted tubers derived from the nucleus unit plots using meristem tissue culture and the mirco-propagation technique. Micro-propagation is a rapid multiplication technique and is now commonly used to produce healthy plant material. The small potato microplants are multiplied up in the laboratory by sub-dividing them into nodal cuttings each of which grows into a new microplant. Sub-division continues until the numbers required for transplanting to a polytunnel are produced. The mini-tubers produced from the polytunnel are sold to specialised seed growers for further multiplication thus providing a regular supply of clean seed for entry into the Seed Potato Certification Scheme.

Maintenance of National Potato Variety Collection

Ireland is oblidged under various international biodiversity commitments to conserve its native genetic resources for food and agriculture. Ireland's National Potato Collection, which is conserved in the Tops Centre, is one of the most important collections of native genetic resources held in the State.

Comprising over 400 accessions, the collection includes old and modern Irish potato varieties as well as varieties from abroad. Some of the old varieties date back to pre-famine times (e.g. Lumper, Black Potato and Skerry Champion). The wide variation of genetic diversity contained within the varieties conserved in this collection ensures a broad genetic base of potato germplasm is maintained. Such diversity will be available to assist potato plant breeders facing the unknown challenges of the future such as climate change.

To celebrate the FAO's International Year of the Potato in 2008, the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (DAFF) published "Potato Varieties of Historical Interest in Ireland " (ISBN No. 978-0-9565715-0-2) which contains a descriptive and photographic record of the main heritage varieties maintained by DAFF. Not all the varieties in the book are of Irish origin, but they were documented because they had strong associations with this country or they are unique to the Tops Potato collection.

Distinctness, Uniformity and Stability Testing Services

The Tops Centre is also responsible for conducting the Distinctness, Uniformity and Stability (DUS) testing on any new varieties entered for Plant Breeders' Rights and/or National Listing. All newly bred potato varieties must undergo a minimum two-year test to ensure that they are;

• Distinct from any other potato variety in common knowledge,
• Uniform in its relevant characteristics,
• Stable in its essential characteristics i.e. it must remain true to its description after repeated reproduction or propagation.
• The guidelines under which these tests are conducted are very specific and are laid down by the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants UPOV. An average of six newly bred varieties are DUS tested annually at the Tops Centre.

Virus Diagnostic Service

The Tops Centre provides a diagnostic service to the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food's, Seed Certification field potato inspectorate staff for all the common potato virus diseases. This service is an important aid for field inspectors in that not all virus diseases are visually identifiable.

Potato Wart Disease

Potato wart disease caused by Synchytrium endobioticum can cause crop losses of up to 50-60%. Thankfully a lot of varieties are immune to the disease. New varieties are screened for susceptibility to potato wart disease by staff at Tops Potato Centre.

Additional Information

For further information on the background and history of the Tops Potato Centre, along with additional information on the activities and services provided by the Potato Laboratory there, please click on the link below:

Tops Potato Laboratory

Potato Quarantine Diseases and Pests

Details about any potato quality or labelling issues should be emailed to PotatoOnline@agriculture.gov.iefor further investigation