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                                27 May 2010

Australia’s $500 million-plus potato industry will benefit from new DNA tests that can quickly and accurately measure major disease-causing agents.  The tests developed by scientists from South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) identify pathogens that can threaten the supply and quality of potatoes.

Damage and losses caused by potato diseases represent one of the most significant production challenges facing the potato processing industry in Australia costing processes and growers more than $80 million a year in yield losses and rejections.

International collaboration is underway to explore how diagnostic tests can be used as a decision-making tool for growers to assess the risk of disease before crops are planted.

The research success is part of a multi-pronged research drive through Phase 1 of the Australian Potato Research Program, funded by Horticulture Australia Limited using the processing potato levy and voluntary contributions from the New Zealand Institute of Plant and Food and Agriculture and Agrifood Canada, with matched funds from the Federal Government.  SARDI, the Department of Primary Industries Victoria and the University of Tasmania/Tasmania Institute of Agricultural Research have provided in-kind support.

Five years in the making, the DNA tests measure on seed and in soil, the pathogens for powdery scab, common scab, Rhizoctonia and a damaging strain of root knot nematode.

SARDI Sustainable Systems Chief, Dr Kathy Ophel Keller says the relatively straight-forward tests identify what and how much of a pathogen is present on seed and soil.

“The information provided will become a very powerful management tool for farmers and researchers,” she said.

“Research teams around the country are now working to link how the DNA values for each pathogen translate to disease risk under different growing conditions with grower groups.  Once we know this, it will be a major step forward for growers to be able to assess the disease risk before sowing potato crops to consider their options to prevent or reduce crop losses.” 

SARDI pathologist Robin Harding said a big advantage with DNA testing is that one sample can be used to test for a range of diseases, so it significantly reduces the required time to test for diseases, and information is available within weeks. 

Potatoes diseases are a worldwide problem.  A second phase of research has begun linking researchers from the United Kingdom, New Zealand and South Africa to explore how to use diagnostic tests to assess disease risk and practical application in the field.  International partners in Phase 2 include Horticulture New Zealand and New Zealand Plant and Food Research and the Potato Council UK program - involving researchers from the Scottish Crops Research Institute, Scottish Agricultural College and the Food and Environment Research Agency UK.

So far the diagnostic approach has been tested on grower field sites in South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania, giving researchers across the country new insights into the relative effectiveness of different control methods.

Media contact: SARDI Communications Grace Taylor (08) 8303 9433, mobile 0401 122 128.  Interviews can be arranged with Dr Kathy Ophel Keller 8303 9417 or 8303 9368.

  
Potato industry quick facts

Potatoes are the world’s fourth most important food crop, rich in potassium and Vitamin C.

Native to South America, spuds reached Europe by 16th century.  It’s thought over thousands of years, more than 5500 varieties have been cultivated. Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics Year Book 2008, 1301.0

Worldwide, the potato has become a hit due to its versatility and relative ease of production - used in pies, soups and stews, mashed potato, fries and crisps.

Potatoes were heavily promoted in Ireland in the mid 1800s to support subsistence farming, offering the highest valuable yield/unit of land.  Between 1845 to 1849, the great potato famine struck in Ireland due to potato blight.  More than a million people are estimated to have died as result of undernourishment as a result.  Today, disease management continues to be a major industry priority.

Within Australia, all states grow significant quantities of potatoes.  The southern states are the highest producers.  In 2008-09, South Australia was the largest producer at 383 221 tonnes (worth more than a quarter of a billion in production value), followed by Tasmania 278 361 tonnes, Victoria 255 483 tonnes, Queensland 97 590 tonnes, WA 88 504 tonnes and NSW 75 372 tonnes.   In 2008-09, potatoes were sown on about 32.5 thousand hectares to produce around 1.18 million tonnes, yielding on average about 36 t/ha.  Total production value for human consumption in 2007-08, was estimated to be more than $650 million (fresh potatoes and potatoes for processing).  Sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics data for 2008-09 (7121 issued April 9 2010) and 7503 series (Data cube 7503D0001 (2007-08).

It was estimated by the mid 1990s that Australians ate their way through about 63-68 kg of mash chips, crisps or bake each year.