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PEI seed potato growers receive financial assistance

The government of Prince Edward Island will help the province’s seed potato growers with an assistance program to compensate for the negative effects COVID-19 has had on their industry.

According to a press release from the PEI government, the Seed Potato Recovery Program is a $1.19 million fund for seed growers who can demonstrate that they have incurred significant costs associated with the pandemic.

“We know COVID-19 has had a negative impact on our seed growers by reducing the volume of potatoes sold and adding extraordinary costs for disposal of surplus potatoes,” said Agriculture and Land Minister Bloyce Thompson. “This funding will help to ensure that Island farmers are in a sound financial position to continue to contribute to the Island economy when the current difficulties are over.”

Seed potato producers who experienced a loss in sales of seed potatoes as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic will be asked to provide adequate documentation of these losses in the application process.

“Seed growers are the foundation of a healthy potato industry, but this has been a hard year for the seed sector,” said Jason Hayden, chairman of the PEI Potato Board. “By putting relief dollars in the hands of these producers, this program will help ensure our industry remains strong and stable.”

Applications will be open until Jan. 15, 2021. For more information, visit the Seed Potato Recovery Program page.