Processing Potato Program

The humble spud has few natural enemies (beside humans), but common scab disease is one that threatens the whole potato industry. Common scab is one of the most prevalent and costly diseases for the potato industry worldwide.

The vegetable research team from the Tasmanian Institute of Agricultural Research (TIAR) is working on ways to combat common scab and minimise the risk to the industry.

TIAR currently manages a $6million 5-year project for the processing potato industry with the goal of developing commercially compatible potato cultivars that are resistant to common scab. Potatoes are a global industry, so the research effort involves scientists from around the world.

This program involves formal collaborations between researchers from Tasmania, South Australia and Victoria, together with New Zealand and Canada - all working towards improved disease management in potatoes.There are also less formal collaborations with researchers in Korea, USA, the Netherlands and the UK.

Local industries are also benefiting from TIAR research into other vegetable diseases, like tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV). At one stage, lettuce growers in the south of the State were suffering unsustainable losses of up to 25 per cent of summer crop due to TSWV.

TIAR researchers helped identify the source of the virus and the key carriers. With the appropriate management program in place, incidence of the virus dropped to trace levels virtually overnight.

Plant pathology has now grown to become one of Tasmania's major research strengths.