Extreme weather threatens Irish potato production

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Ireland is at risk of a severe potato shortage as heavy rain delays planting of its biggest vegetable crop, while Brexit continues to complicate seed supplies.

The Celtic country, whose annual per capita potato consumption is 94kg, is almost three times the global average, usually starts its main growing season now. But experts say difficult conditions caused by climate change have disrupted the timeline.

Like most growers, Sean Ryan, chairman of the Potato Committee of the Irish Farmers Association, has yet to plant a single potato on his 40 acres in south-eastern County Wexford.

“We’re trying to get the fields dry before plowing them,” he said. He said there may be a handful of farmers starting work, but most won’t start until Monday or Tuesday.

Including him, whose land is in the highlands and usually drier, but even he has had difficulties this year. “I’ve never seen anything like this before,” said Ryan, who has been farming for 30 years.

Agricultural consultant Richard Hackett noted that scientists attribute longer dry spells and longer wet spells to the effects of a warming planet. You’d be remiss if you said it wasn’t climate change… The past few years have been difficult and these long periods are definitely getting longer.

Ireland became the first European country to use South American plants as a major crop. It thrived in Ireland’s soil and climate and became a mainstay of the diet: by the mid-19th century, Irish men were eating up to 6kg a day.

But a devastating blight that began in 1845 destroyed potato crops and triggered a famine that shaped Irish history. Mr. Gorta The Great Hunger in Ireland killed more than 1 million people and forced as many as 2 million people to immigrate in the following years, mostly to the United States.

Ireland’s current problems stem not from over-reliance on a single crop, as it did then, but from a single variety bred in Ireland. The IFA said the powdered red-skinned rooster, developed by Teagasc, Ireland’s national agricultural research agency and launched commercially in 1991, is now Ireland’s best-selling product, accounting for the majority of the market.

Hackett says we should look for other, more suitable species. Rooster has a very, very long growing season and it is not well suited to rainy or later planting seasons.

By mid-April, Ireland’s 160 potato growers typically have 21,000 acres under cultivation. Ryan said only about 50 have been planted so far.

Teagasc potato crop expert Shay Phelan said there would undoubtedly be short-term supply issues.

Phelan said Brexit was the biggest issue for seed supply. Ireland used to rely on seed potatoes from Scotland but can no longer source them from outside the EU because even though potatoes for processing can be imported, the plants cannot be grown into soil here in the EU.

But there are some upsides to Brexit: Irish fish and chip shops, which have traditionally relied on cheaper British potatoes, are starting to reverse that trend and are almost able to compete with them and therefore be able to regain market share, Phelan added.

Climate change could also boost Ireland’s position as an EU supplier as key agricultural regions such as Spain suffer from soaring temperatures and declining aquifers. ‘I think Ireland is in a good position to benefit from climate change because we have lots of water,’ Hackett said.

For now, farmers are hoping the predicted dry weather will come true. But the Methodist Church in Ireland is not taking any chances, asking its congregations to pray for the rain to subside and for understanding and an appropriate response from governments… and consumers.