After completing its 2022 national survey for potato wart, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) can confirm that no potato wart was found in the soil samples tested from the fields where the samples were gathered.

Fields in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia were included in the study. The nationwide potato wart survey included the collection and testing of nearly 1500 soil samples from seed potato fields. Farms that had previously received seed potatoes from Prince Edward Island (PEI) were one of the criteria used in field selection.

“This survey is an important step in the Government of Canada’s efforts to help contain and control the spread of potato wart and reassure domestic and international trading partners,” according to a recent CFIA press release.

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA APHIS) of the United States Department of Agriculture and the Canadian Potato Council have both received the survey findings. The CFIA’s evidence-based decision-making in handling potato wart will continue to be influenced by science.

“Monitoring for potato wart across the country is an important part of mitigating risk and ensuring that current outbreaks remain contained and controlled. Activities, such as the national survey for potato wart, and other ongoing investigations related to potato wart, demonstrate the CFIA’s continuing commitment to the important potato industry, which is the fifth-largest primary agriculture crop in Canada,” CFIA communicators reported.

The highly persistent fungus known as potato wart can degrade the yield and quality of potato tubers on farms. It can spread via the movement of soil, agricultural machinery, and potatoes from potato wart-infected fields. When it is discovered, the illness is contained, controlled, and prevented from spreading because it is a pest that is subject to regulation under the Plant Protection Act. There is no danger to human health from potato warts.

As part of the 2022 national potato wart survey, nearly 1500 soil samples were collected from 77 fields across the country, excluding Newfoundland and Labrador, and PEI. No potato wart pathogen (Synchytrium endobioticum) was detected in any of the samples submitted as part of this survey.

The number of soil samples collected and analyzed for potato wart fluctuates year to year based on identified export samples, the requirements of investigations, and follow-up surveillance under the Potato Wart Domestic Long Term Management Plan.