OPINION AND CONT EXT World climate change calls for drastic changes in potato cultivation Increasing need for moisture It seems to be a fact that temperatures on earth will be rising in years to come. The question is how will the potato sector cope with that. If we look at potato growing in Northern Europe, hectare yields will increase, but so will the costs of cultivation. Growers will have to spend more money on irrigation and on controlling pests and diseases. It may look like a contradiction, the need for more gation, because the total amount of ainfall will also increase. There are, however, two factors that will demand more irrigation. Firstly, rain is expected to fall during the same periods as in the past decades, the only difference is that the amount of rain per period will be higher. The dry summer eriods will be just as long, but they will also be warmer. As a result, the evaporation of the potato plants will also be higher and because of that the need for moisture will increase. Local authorities to move From the picture Hiemstra is painting, in short, we can expect weather with more extreme conditions in Northern Europe; more periods with excess rain and more periods with a shortage of rain. If you know this, you can do two things, says Hiemstra: one is to anticipate and two is to let it happen. The latter is not really the most advisable. There are already sufficient ways of anticipating the potential, and already existing, weather changes. There are growers, for example, who are currently insuring their crops against weather extremes, or coverFormidable challenges Other possible adaptations that the potato sector can utilise include the growing of potato varieties that are resistant to weather extremes. These varieties are already available, but so far they have only found their way to those faraway countries that are already used to weather extremes. The potato sector in Northern Europe and also all other countries in the world are therefore faced with formidable challenges as far as anticipating climate change is concerned. ‘Potato growers all over the world will be confronted with climate change. I advise them all to start working together with scientists and public authorities to find solutions to safeguard the production of one of the most important arable crops in the world’, says Hiemstra bringing his weather prophecy to a close. ● Leo Hanse and Jaap Delleman ing weather risks with weather derivatives. These are particularly practicable temporary methods, but by no means the solution-oriented answers to climate change. Adjustments that are solution-oriented are more to be found in safeguarding the water supply and water run-off in agricultural areas. The importance of both an efficient fresh water supply and water run-off is steadily increasing in Northern Europe. In areas where the water supply and the water run-off is optimal, the matter should be taken in hand without delay. The need to have rainwater discharged and fresh water supplied at the required times is fast becoming urgent. This is not only a matter for the potato growers in these areas, but also for the local and higher authorities. Take, for example, the south-western part of the Netherlands. Many areas in that region lack fresh water. This lack is already causing problems now, both for crops and yields. To guarantee potato growing now and in the future, a secured fresh-water supply is essential. Seed potato crops in the Netherlands and in other countries of Northern Europe may also be at risk, as not all regions have spring water to draw from. Talking about the situation in Northern Europe, the weatherman expects that a disease such as Phytophthora will have an even better chance of striking. Potato World 2009 • number 4 15 Pagina 14
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