Potato Review

6 POTATO REVIEW NOVEM BER/DECEMB ER 2020 NEWS Having visited growers regularly throughout the season, Alex said growing conditions had been favourable and crops had looked well. “In England, we saw the first crops coming out the ground in Norfolk at the end of August and beginning of September. In the west of the country – Shropshire and Wales – growers were done nice and early.” He said Performer and Spectra varieties were looking particularly good. Lifting has been non-stop in Scotland too, says agronomy and procurement manager, Gavin Prentice. “We’ve experienced exceptional weather conditions. Some growers haven’t had to stop for a single day, which is unheard of and means harvest should be completed much earlier than usual.” “Potatoes coming out of the ground are looking good and the dry conditions mean there is little earth going into boxes. However, we may see more damage and bruising as a result of less soil travelling over the harvester webs. Provided growers get sucient air around the crop, grading should be relatively straightforward.” ‘BUD the Spud made a return during lockdown to urge consumers to rethink potatoe usage in a continuation of AHDB’s ‘More Than a Bit on the Side’ campaign. The revised adverts targeted Bud the Spud content is a lockdown consumers aged 25 to 54 and families with younger children giving hhints and tips on how to get the best from their spuds and leading to 200,000 website visits. The “More Than Just a Bit On The Side” video was seen over 716,000 times ➜ CHALLENGE ONE: We are so con dent that a new 2021 GRIMME GF600 Tiller with speed- blades will outperform any similar machine from a competitor and improve tilling quality and soil condition that, if it doesn’t, we’ll give you a complete set of new blades for FREE. 1 GRIMME UK Ltd. Terms and Conditions Apply. For full details visit www.grimme.co.uk . 1 Excludes comparisons with hook and other non-L blades and relates only to soil condition / clod size. No cash alternative. Look for the GRIMME logo. The latest 12mm gauge blade is manufactured from high grade steel and carries the GRIMME logo to show it’s Original Quality. In most conditions this blade offers extended working life. I il i - l il i il i i i il i li il i i i i ll i l l I . r s itio s ly. r f l t ils visit . rimm . . . 1 lu s ris s it t r - la s r lat s ly t s il itio / lo size. No cash alternativ . f r t I l . lat st la is f t r fr ig r st l car ies t I lo t s it’s rigin l lity. I st itio s t is la f rs t r in lif .