SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Aug. 30 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Association of Farmers and Ranchers of the Canary Islands (Asaga Canarias Asaja) has demanded this Wednesday the implementation of a battery of measures that promote self-sufficiency of local potatoes by promoting cultivation, especially in the midlands of the islands.
If this objective is achieved, it would serve to reduce imports of this tuber from countries like England, currently affected by the presence of the red beetle, and whose Plant Health alert forced, last week, a stoppage in the Canarian ports and return to its place of residence. origin several containers, causing a drop in supply on the islands.
Among the actions to be implemented to prevent situations of this type from affecting the local market is the sanitation of traditional seed potato varieties such as ‘Cara’ and ‘Red Cara’, characterized by their vigor and high yield, in addition to others such as ‘King Edward’, ‘Up to Date’ or ‘Kerr’s Pink’.
This procedure allows the disinfection of the tubers to free them from pests and diseases using in vitro techniques, work that Cultesa SA – a company dependent on the Island Council of Tenerife specialized in agricultural biotechnology – has carried out on old potato varieties from the Canary Islands to its marketing to producers, Asaga details in a note.
Sanitizing these varieties had not been considered until now because it was more profitable for the farmer to import the seed than to acquire it from a specialized center.
However, as there is a lower supply of imported potatoes for planting and prices rise, it would be viable to have a local alternative to avoid having to import, while the producer would be better remunerated.
In addition to the sanitation of potato varieties, Asaga Canarias Asaja considers crop planning essential, both planting and harvesting, with the intention of being able to have production staggered throughout the year.
CONDITION THE COLD CHAMBERS
Likewise, the conditioning of the cold chambers is required, some of them currently inoperative, without whose function the adequate conservation of the potatoes cannot be guaranteed as occurs in other countries and the consequent supply to the different points of sale, they point out. .
Another crucial factor to take into account in the proposed strategy to increase local potato production is to be able to have irrigation water available in quantity and quality, increasing the regeneration of residual flows of urban origin to make it available to farms located in the medians of the islands.
With this, Asaga indicates, it would be possible to create an agricultural belt, around the forest crown, that prevents forest fires.
For Asaga Canarias Asaja, “if farmers have guarantees to cultivate and it is profitable to produce, a call effect will be achieved for others to join, production will be increased and, at the same time, dependence on the outside world will be reduced.”
BORDER CONTROLS
Along these lines, it underlines the importance of the operation of border controls in the Canary Islands, in this case, thanks to the existence of the Order of March 12, 1987, which establishes phytosanitary regulations relating to the import, export, and transit of vegetables and products.
The association highlights that it has always defended this regulation which, although lacking in personnel at border inspection points, protects the islands from the arrival of new pests.
Furthermore, the impossibility of importing potatoes from England has coincided in time with this year’s reduced potato campaign, especially in the north of Tenerife (municipalities such as La Orotava, Los Realejos and San Juan de La Rambla), where only has collected around 20% of the harvest.
The causes of this reduction are due to high temperatures, above 28ºC at the beginning of spring, relative humidity below 20% and wind.
The effects of this climatic cocktail caused a reduction in the plant cover in more than 50% of the crop, a decrease in the vegetative cycle in four weeks, as well as a lack of tuberization and fattening, which caused the tuber to not reach, nor the appropriate size or weight, resulting in a significant loss of production.
Asaga Canarias Asaja hopes that the implementation of these measures will at least allow the potato acreage in the Canary Islands to not continue to decline as it has until now. In fact, in 2021, 4,048 hectares were registered (2,638 hectares irrigated and 1,410 dry land), 1,461 hectares less than in 2015.
