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What is potato in Ireland used for? How much is planted? What are the issues with growing potato in Ireland? GM potato Global distribution of GM potato What is potato in Ireland used for? Potatoes grown in Ireland are used for table use, french frying and crisp making. The end use of a potato is determined by quality characteristics such as skin finish, defects and processing quality. In Ireland, presently sown potato varieties are processed for the production of chips, crisps and other snacks. Potatoes are not grown for industrial starch use. As potatoes may be dehydrated, flaked, diced, sliced, peeled, crushed, ground, frozen, and shaped, an enormous array of new potato products are presently being developed for the food, energy and manufacturing sectors. While the waste products from processed potatoes are a disposal problem for the processors, they can also be a valuable source of feed for the livestock industry. Cull potatoes and, in some years, surplus production of potatoes are a source of high energy feed for livestock How much is planted? The area cultivated under potatoes in 2006 was 12,100 hectares (see graph) and this produced a total crop of 403,000 tonnes. Maincrop potatoes are mainly sown in March/April and harvesting is carried out in September/October. Seventy percent of Irish potato production can be attributed to just three varieties: Rooster, Kerr's Pink and British Queen. Rooster, which was developed by Teagasc, now accounts for between 40 - 45% of the maincrop production.  What are the issues with growing potatoes in Ireland? Potato is susceptible to several bacterial, fungal and viral diseases both during the growing season and post-harvest. As a result, significant quantities and frequent applications of crop protection products are applied. Late blight (caused by the fungus Phytophthora infestans) is one of the most distructive potato diseases and costs the Irish potato industry €10 million annually. Other pests and diseases include common scab, gangrene, black leg, potato cyst nematode and potato virus X and Y Other management issues that arise in Ireland include: - Weed control
- Supplying the correct quantity of nitrogen to the crop
- Drought in some regions
- Wet weather can make it difficult to harvest the crop
GM potato The first reported genetic modification of potato was in 1986 (An et al. ,1986; Shanin and Simpson, 1986). To date, traits incorporated into potato include herbicide tolerance, modified starch composition and fungal resistance (e.g. late blight). In addition, several potato varieties have been modified for virus resistance (e.g. resistance to potato leaf roll virus, potato virus Y and potato virus X) and for the production of pharmaceuticals. Future aims for the genetic modification of potato will incorporate: - Enhanced tuber quality e.g. protein-rich potato to combat malnutrition or reduction of tuber bruising resulting from mechanical damage
- Altered tuber quality e.g. potato may be modified to produce fructans, which play a role in drought and cold tolerance
- Enhanced pharmaceutical production. GM potatoes have already been developed to generate edible vaccines for immunity to gastroentertis, cervical cancer, hepatitis and bronchitis
The most beneficial modifications to Irish farmers at the moment would involve resistance against numerous diseases and pest (e.g. late blight, blackleg and potato cyst nematode), greater nitrogen-use efficiency and resistance to drought Global distribution of GM potato Presently, there is no commercial cultivation of GM potato. However, a starch-modified GM potato ('Amflora™') could soon be grown in Europe for use by the paper and starch industry. Visit here for more information. Source: - CSO (2007). Crops and livestock survey - June 2006
- Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Food (2007). Compendium of Irish agricultural statistics 2005. http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/index.jsp?file=publicat/compendium2005/home.xml Accessed 15 Oct 2007
- Report of the Working Group (2005). Coexistence of GM and non-GM crops in Ireland
An, G., Watson, B.D. and Chiang, C.C. (1986). Transformation of tobacco, tomato, potato, and Arabidopsis thaliana using binary Ti vextor system. Plant Physiology 81, 301-305 Shanin, E.A. and Simpson, R.B. (1986). Gene transfer system for potato. Hortscience 21, 1199-1201 Hutchinson, P.J.S., Tonks, D.J. and Beutler, B.R. (2003). Efficacy and economics of weed control programs in glyphosate-resistant potato (Solanum tuberosum). Weed Technology 17, 854-865 Song J, Bradeen J, Naess SK, Raasch JA, Wielgus SM, et al. (2003). Gene RB cloned from Solanum bulbocastanum confers broad spectrum resistance to potato late blight. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science USA 100,9128-9133
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