The Japanese government has lifted an 11-year-old ban on importing fresh Idaho chipping potatoes.
Japan imposed a ban on importing all U.S. chipping potatoes in April 2006 in response to the discovery of a quarantined pest – the pale cyst nematode – in a small area of Eastern Idaho. Trade was restored with other U.S. chipping potato states about a year later, but restrictions on Idaho were left in place.
The Idaho Potato Commission this spring said Japanese chip makers experienced a shortage following a poor domestic harvest and had to stop selling some products. Japan will continue to exclude any Idaho chipping potatoes from Bonneville and Bingham counties, which encompass the quarantine area.
Japan imported about 28,000 tons of U.S. chipping potatoes last year, about 3.5 times more volume than five years ago.
Japan still won’t allow any other types of fresh potatoes from any U.S. states to be imported.
If left uncontrolled, nematodes can cause up to 80 percent yield loss in potato fields. Affected potato plants may exhibit yellowing, wilting, or death of foliage – none of which has been observed in Idaho fields.
Meanwhile, the Idaho Potato Commission will shift its focus to Mexico, which allows the importation of fresh U.S. potatoes within 26 kilometers of the U.S. border, but mandates that all Idaho fresh spuds undergo a special pale cyst nematode test.
The industry is asking Mexico to change its testing requirement to cover only Bonneville and Bingham counties. (Capital Press)
