Prince Edward Island Potatoes Show Promise

Prince Edward Island is emblematic of two things: the story of Anne of Green Gables and potatoes. Both are woven into the history and culture of Canada’s smallest province, referred to as “PEI.” Both are back on track after some serious challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tourism on PEI, anchored by visitors enamored by the classic children’s story of 11-year-old orphan Anne, has rebounded after being completely shut down by the pandemic for two years. 

Potatoes, similarly affected by closures imposed by the virus on tens of thousands of restaurants in Canada, have kick-started again with global sales projected to rise by 3.5% annually through 2027. About 60% of potato sales are for processing, such as french fries. The lion’s share of these products are consumed in restaurants.

That’s exactly the market that the Waugh family, fifth-generation potato farmers in Summerside, PEI, works to supply. Allan Waugh and his two sons, Jeremy and Jonathan, are owners of Willard Waugh & Sons, Ltd., a family farm that annually harvests 30 million pounds  of potatoes from one third of the 3,000 acres of prime  PEI farmland they own. 

Most of the potatoes are delivered to Cavendish Farms, the fourth-largest potato processor in North America, at its processing plant in nearby New Annan. Harvested in October, the potatoes are stored on the farm in temperature- and ventilation-controlled fridges and shipped out each month when needed at the processing plant. 

“That’s a constant feed out every time they say they need another truckload: You fill them up, and off they go,” says Allan. “There are days when we’ve done up to 50 tandem loads of potatoes direct to the plant, and then they’re also rotating through to the other farmers as well. The plant chews up a lot of potatoes in a day.”

Allan adds that they have also started to market table potatoes to local packaging plants to diversify and take advantage of consumers’ increased demand for fresh products. In the context of rising food prices since the pandemic, potatoes are one of the lower priced food staples and, therefore, more attractive to budget-conscious families.

Ideal potato-growing conditions
“We test new varieties each year,” says Jeremy, noting that they’re always on the lookout for potatoes that use less water, are adapted to the increasing changes in weather patterns and require a shorter growing season. “Lack of water affects the quality of the potatoes, and with local restrictions on water volumes for irrigation, we have to make sure we can guarantee quality to the processor,” he adds. The farm received a Cavendish Farms’ “Top 10” award for quality in 2020-2021.

Their water permits only provide enough to irrigate half of the potato crop, which can reduce yields by up to 30% on the unirrigated fields, depending on the rainfall that year.

PEI’s sandy, well-draining soils, combined with its moderate climate and adequate rainfall, are ideal for potato farming. In addition, the Waughs have implemented a multifaceted land management system to ensure productivity, quality and environmental compliance while dealing with resource limitations.

The farm has a three-year rotation plan that includes potatoes, milling wheat and forage crops, principally alfalfa, but also uses forages as a green manure plow down. They also trade their hay fields for land use on other farms, as they need 3,000 acres of land to produce 1,000 acres of potatoes each year. 

Reliance on SmartTrax™
This is all overlaid by the relatively small size of fields on PEI, which average 45 acres. Compared to other potato-growing areas, such as Alberta and Idaho, the field sizes present efficiency and equipment challenges.

That’s where the farm’s New Holland tractors come in. The Waughs have SmartTrax™ on one of their T8 Series tractors, which gives them maneuverability and agility regardless of field size. 

“The SmartTrax system allows us to have the size of tractor we need for the field work and traction required in light sandy soils, and we get the same amount of work done as others using five or six dual-equipped tractors,” Allan says.

He adds that they’ve always received superior service from their local New Holland dealer and plan to add a fifth tractor soon to better handle crop protection applications and specialized field machinery.

The Waughs have also found that their New Holland machinery is well-suited to precision farming. They’ve had GPS operating in their tractor cabs for 12 years.

“All our field records are now digital. Every pass with a sprayer or spreader, who did it, when they did it and what the weather was, it’s all linked into the computerized recordkeeping system,” says Jeremy. “We use it for traceability and our management records to keep track of yields and zoom in on poor areas in a field.”

The SmartTrax-equipped tractor also factors into Waugh’s environmental sustainability plan, as the system allows them more power for cultivation with less compaction. Given the more frequent snow melts during the winter, they’ve added more greenways and forgone the moldboard plow to reduce erosion. 

Managing expensive inputs
“We now use one-pass applications, whereas, in the old days, we used to make five passes with bigger tractors. We no longer go over the soil multiple times in a season and also use the alfalfa’s tap root to help break up the soil,” Allan notes.

The farm’s biggest challenge is inputs, which have risen dramatically in cost since the pandemic. Jeremy estimates costs for fertilizer and crop protection materials have increased by 40% over the last couple of years, exacerbated by the war in Ukraine. 

Potatoes require substantial amounts of nitrogen. They have experimented with liquid fertilizer to substitute for granular forms affected by sanctions on Russia, but Jeremy feels they still need more research. 

“I don’t know why we can’t seem to make liquid fertilizer work as well as granules,” he says. “We certainly tried, but we can plant more acres with bigger equipment using granular fertilizer, and it’s easier to handle.”

So far, the farm’s operations haven’t been impacted by the labor shortage affecting the agri-food sector in general. The three family members work full time. They add eight employees over the summer and another 20 in the fall for harvest.

“We’ve been fortunate so far, but it’s getting harder as skilled people are in high demand,” Allan says. “Not many people are brought up on a farm anymore, so they don’t know about working long hours in all types of weather.” 

He notes that many farms and businesses in the area hire temporary foreign workers. The Waughs have been thinking about this, too, if they want to expand the operation in two or three years.

Growing the operation
The Waughs have already taken steps toward growth through a partnership with Tolsma-Grisnich Canada, a global company that supplies storage facilities and handling equipment for potatoes, onions and carrots.

Jonathan heads up these operations and travels to eastern Canada to install and maintain the equipment and facilities supplied by the company. The deal enables them to hire skilled workers, such as electricians, who also come in handy for their own storage and maintenance needs.

Other projects being considered include adding more acres to increase production and support more warehouse facilities. The additional capacity would allow them to supply new markets. The Waughs would like to add more buyers to their list, especially in the U.S. 

They will also look at crops such as canola, soybeans and peas for their rotational attributes and market potential.

“If it’s got a good ROI and is a proper fit with potatoes, why not?” Allan concludes.