‘Hope is Diminishing’: P.E.I. Potato Farmers Brace for Major Crop Losses Amid Severe Drought

Prince Edward Island potato farmers are bracing for one of their toughest harvests in decades as a lack of rain devastates crops across the Island. Growers say this summer’s drought-like conditions are among the worst since 2001, with even irrigated fields struggling.

Andrew Lawless of Hilltop Produce in Kinkora has been irrigating 40 per cent of his fields weekly since July, but still expects to lose around 30 per cent of his average yield. “It’s the worst year of my career,” he said, noting that dry, sandy soil is making harvest difficult and increasing risks of bruising and rot in storage.

Greg Donald, general manager of the P.E.I. Potato Board:

"It's very tough. It's going to be quite a loss to the farm. It's the worst year since 2001 and definitely the worst year of my career."

Andrew Lawless, operator of Hilltop Produce in Kinkora, is expecting a significant loss for his farm this year due to the dry conditions P.E.I. has been experiencing.

Lawless is not alone. Greg Donald, general manager of the P.E.I. Potato Board, said the board has been hearing from farmers across the province who are worried about this year's crop. 

The problem is not unique to P.E.I.; he said there's been less rain that usual in many regions of North America, particularly in northeastern U.S. and Canada.

The board's research team goes out weekly to dig up some potatoes to measure how they're growing, in a process called sampling. Until about a week ago, crops were tracking close to the five-year average.

Greg Donald:

"But it's apparent now that it's going to be below average, you know, in more recent sampling. The concern is that it's been too dry, and either some varieties have, we'll say, [run] out of steam, or they've died off because of the drought conditions."

Greg Donald says potato crops in Prince Edward Island are now tracking below the five-year average due to the dry conditions, which are causing some varieties to fail.

He added that even drought-resistant, later-maturing varieties are struggling because there hasn't been enough moisture for full development.

Donald said the financial implications could be significant. It costs more than $5,000 to grow an acre of potatoes, and seed-potato production costs even more. If farmers can't at least recover that investment, he said they could be in trouble.

Looking ahead, he said high temperatures will continue this week and there isn't much rain in the forecast for the next two weeks.

Greg Donald:

"Hope is diminishing for this year, but we're still, you know... hopeful that it won't be as bad as [2001]."

Harvesting has already begun in some areas, with the main harvest for potatoes destined for storage expected to start in two to three weeks. Most farms aim to finish taking in the crop by late October.

Donald said only about 10 per cent of the potato acreage on P.E.I. is irrigated, and that makes a big difference in drought years. 

Investing in irrigation

On his farm, Lawless said the potatoes are currently at the bulking stage, when they put on extra weight. In his irrigated fields, the crops are still healthy, but the story is much different in non-irrigated fields.

Andrew Lawless, operator of Hilltop Produce in Kinkora:

"You need to be able to carry a bit of clay whenever you're harvesting, and with the ground as sand right now, the clay would just sift through the chains like nothing. Once they bruise, they will rot, and it will create quite a challenge in storage as well."

Since the beginning of July, Andrew Lawless has been using an irrigation system to water about 40 per cent of his crops once a week.

He's thankful to have invested in an irrigation system, which relies on low-capacity wells going down 75 metres to feed irrigation ponds. The initial investment was costly, but he said it would be far more expensive to install today.

Andrew Lawless:

"I'm a big believer in climate change, and I can see the changes each year... We are going to have to invest more into new techniques to grow the crop."

"We hope to grow it by at least a third for next year, and we'll have more acres under, probably grow our percentage to 55 per cent for next year, and just keep growing it as we can."

Lawless said this year's situation makes him more concerned that these dry conditions will become more common as the climate changes.

Andrew Lawless:

"I'm a big believer in climate change, and I can see the changes each year. You look down to the south and the U.S. and in Canada, we're poised very well to grow food for the world. We are going to have to invest more into new techniques to grow the crop."