News
Canada, P.E.I. governments pledge up to $40 million for Surplus Potato Management Response plan

The Governments of Canada and Prince Edward Island announced details on the Surplus Potato Management Response plan this week. As part of this plan, the Government of Canada will provide up to $28 million and the Province of PEI up to $12.2 million.

The Surplus Potato Management Response will be cost-shared between the federal and provincial governments, with a goal of diverting as many potatoes as possible to processors, packers and food banks, and minimizing the amount of surplus potatoes that must be destroyed. Producers will also receive support to assist with the costs of environmentally sound destruction of surplus potatoes. Producers will receive up to $0.085 per pound for the disposal of potatoes. Through the plan, an estimated 2.90 million cwt (290 million pounds) will be diverted to processors, packers, dehydrators, food banks and other markets. Current estimates suggest that three million cwt (300 million pounds) will need to be destroyed, representing just over 10 per cent of PEI’s total 2021 production. The PEI Potato Board will deliver the plan on behalf of the governments to manage potatoes that have been rendered surplus.