(CHARLOTTETOWN, PE – September 28, 2017) Harvest time has arrived for Prince Edward Island potato farmers! It’s a busy and exciting time of year, when farmers put in long hours to harvest their crop after working hard throughout the growing season to nurture and protect their world famous PEI Potatoes. This is in addition to the other field crops grown as part of the potato rotation, being harvested in an increasingly diverse agriculture industry in Prince Edward Island.
This fall, Island motorists are reminded to watch for slow moving farm vehicles at this busy time of year. Large harvesting equipment and trucks will be moving to and from fields across the Island. We ask motorists to be patient when coming across farm equipment on Island highways and to ensure that it is safe before passing large harvesters, tractors and trucks.
Prince Edward Island family farms produce as much as 25 percent of the Canadian potato crop from our rich, red soil. Prince Edward Island Potatoes are destined for grocery store shelves across Canada, the United States, and many other nations, and potatoes grown on the Island are made into French fries, potato chips, and other potato products that travel the globe!
To celebrate the harvest and the potato industry’s place in the fabric of life on Prince Edward Island, Island potato farmers are proud to again be the title sponsors of Farm Day in the City, held in downtown Charlottetown. They welcome Islanders and visitors to join them in Charlottetown on Sunday, October 1st for a celebration of PEI’s vibrant agriculture sector and to purchase some tasty potato treats, with proceeds going to local charities and service organizations.
Prince Edward Island Potatoes are world renowned for the great taste and quality that comes from growing in the unique red soil of PEI. The potato industry in PEI creates a total economic impact of $1.065 billion dollars and directly or indirectly employs over 12% of the Island workforce. The Prince Edward Island Potato Board is a producer-controlled association dedicated to supporting the highest performance of an economically and environmentally sustainable potato industry.