Boosting growers’ confidence amidst the current sector challenges will be key at Scotland’s Rural College’s (SRUC) potato conference in Dundee.
More than 150 of the UK’s leading potato producers and industry representatives will gather on Wednesday January 24 for the 25th annual conference of the SAC Association of Potato Producers (SACAPP).
The one-day event day will review the way in which UK producers could learn from both the Irish and Australian industry.
It will also highlight the ambitions of the National Potato Innovation centre and provide opportunities for discussion, workshops, and networking.
The 2024 event theme will be ‘building resilience into potato businesses’ however, the conference will also be looking at some of the more intractable challenges facing the industry, such as potato cyst nematode (PCN).
Key speakers on the day which will be chaired by the SAC Consulting’s own Senior Potato consultant, Dr Kyran Maloney, will include Dr James Price and Professor Ian Toth from the James Hutton Institute, Tom Murray from O’Shea Farms & Nuffield Scholar and Dr Nigel Crump, general manager of AuSPICA, Australia.
Professor Gerry Saddler, Chief Plant Health Officer for Scotland, who will deliver his vision for the Scottish potato industry as a closing presentation, is encouraging as many people in the sector to attend as possible.
SAC Consulting’s potato team will also be providing wider potato tips and SRUC’s Stuart Wale urged those in the sector to take the opportunity to get involved.
The conference will take place between 9.30am and 4pm on January 24 at The Apex City Quay Hotel, Dundee.
The event is free to SACAPP members to attend, but tickets are available to purchase for non-SACAPP growers and trade.
For more information and to book your tickets, please email, sacapp@sac.co.uk.
