The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) on Thursday announced an agreement with Mexico’s national service for agri-food health, safety and quality (SENASICA) to allow shipments to Mexico of Canadian potatoes for consumption or processing.

CFIA said it will “work closely with the potato sector in the coming months as next steps are implemented.”

WHY IT MATTERS: Almost 93 per cent of Canada’s fresh potato exports by dollar value in the 2024-25 marketing year were to the U.S. alone.

Canada’s potato exports to Mexico today are almost entirely in frozen potato products. According to Statistics Canada export data for 2024-25, Canada shipped about 55,526 tonnes of frozen potatoes, valued at about C$77.7 million, to Mexico.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA/FAS) says Canada that year held about a 34 per cent share of Mexico’s total imports of frozen potatoes, compared to a 52 per cent share for the U.S. and 14 per cent for Belgium.

Meanwhile, citing information from Trade Data Monitor (TDM), FAS says the U.S. has been “Mexico’s sole supplier of fresh potato imports” in recent years. In the 2023-24 marketing year, those imports came in at 204,165 tonnes.

The bulk of Mexico’s potato consumption is supplied by its domestic growers, who produced about 2.12 million tonnes in 2024.

A 2025 FAS report on the Mexican potato market said its consumers favour the domestically-grown Alpha potato variety, and “the dominance of domestically produced potatoes in the Mexican market, accounting for 91 per cent of domestic consumption, limits awareness of other potato options among Mexican households.”

FAS noted Mexico requires any fresh potato imports to be packaged in 20-pound bags or smaller, adding that Mexican consumers prefer to hand-select produce and buy relatively smaller quantities more frequently.

Imported fresh potatoes in Mexico, FAS said, today go primarily instead to “restaurants seeking to offer differentiated premium products to their customers.”

Mexico’s new move to allow Canadian fresh potatoes follows a trade mission last October by Canada’s federal agriculture minister Heath MacDonald, during which the two countries “agreed to enhance regulatory and technical co-operation” under a 2025-2028 action plan.

Those talks continued during another trade mission to Mexico last month, led by Dominic LeBlanc, minister for Canada-U.S. trade, CFIA said Thursday. MacDonald also took part in that mission, according to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

The 2025-2028 action plan called for the two countries to make progress on a sanitary and phytosanitary work plan to improve market access for agricultural products for both countries’ consumers and processors, and on mutual recognition of electronic certification for plant, animal, aquaculture and fishing products.

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This is the last of its informal seed modernization consultations before it publishes draft amendments to seed regulations the agency said in a news release. The process of modernizing Canada’s seed regulations has been ongoing since 2020 — since 2019 for the potato sector.

Up for feedback are a series of proposed changes to seed potatoes and Part 2 and 3 of the Seeds regulation. The proposals fit into three categories:

• Reduce red tape
• Support the well-being of the industry
• Protect farmers, consumers, markets and the environment

Feedback on the costs and benefits of the proposed policy decisions is also welcome, the CFIA said.

The online consultations are open to any interested parties, including industry members and the general public. They close Feb. 5.

The agency said it will report results of the consultation early in 2026. It will then seek targeted input from stakeholders before publishing draft regulatory amendments in the Canada Gazette.

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CP Farms is family owned and operated with 2,500 acres near Barnwell, another 1,000 in Vauxhall and 500 in Raymond.

The farm primarily grows potatoes, but grain, corn, and sugar beets helps fill out four-year rotations to suppress disease and resistance.

Much of its equipment comes from Europe.

“Our soil type is a lot more similar to Western Europe versus the U.S. A lot of the U.S-built equipment are built to operate in very sandy conditions, where we have more of a clay soil. So the European equipment works way better with that,” said owner Michel Camps, a husband and father of four.

“I would say 50 per cent of the acres in southern Alberta are harvested or handled with European equipment.”

Camps prides himself on the quality seed he uses.

CP Farms multiplies about 50 per cent of its seed itself once, shipping high-generation seed from the Lacombe-Red Deer-Edmonton area.

Planters can plant about 100 acres a day with tillage capabilities, and cover crops are used in rotations to shelter soil from the windy conditions of southern Alberta.

Plenty of science and technology is used to power CP Farms, including fertilizer spreaders that have weather stations and radar. CP Farms spreads 7,000 to 8,000 tonnes of manure or compost on its land every year to improve soil health and nutrients.

“It will correct its spreading patterns reading the winds. It’s very precise in applying fertilizer. Fertilizer is very expensive and we want it where it belongs,” said Camps.

As well, receiving lines for the potatoes have Sputnik Airsep, which separates the rocks, vines, leaves and lumps from the valuable crop.

CP Farms grows four varieties of potatoes and stores 24,000 tonnes in eight bins at its Barnwell-area operation and another 9,000 tonnes in Vauxhall.

Seventy per cent of the farm’s potatoes end up in McDonald’s french fries, although McCain’s also sells to other local quick-serve restaurants as well.

Camps said not every potato is created equal for consumption.

“The McCain french fries you you see in the grocery store are not from here; they came from Manitoba,” said Camps.

“We grow four different varieties and they are all McDonald’s approved. In Manitoba, they grow 10 to 15 different varieties. Some varieties, they do really well on the retail side, which is usually a shorter cut and a shorter fry. McDonald’s prefers the longer skinnier fries.”

CP Farms can load potatoes 365 days a year and store them in a climate-controlled environment.

The storage bins are insulated to three times the regular house standards to protect against the swings of southern Alberta weather, which can range from harsh winters to cooking summers. Storage temperature is kept at about 10 C and 98 per cent humidity.

“It is important we have a constant and steady environment for potatoes,” Camps said.

“If the temperatures go up and down all the time, the potatoes are going to produce sugars. The sugars will caramelize in the frying process and make your fries look dark, which isn’t what we want.”

He said the farm uses about $15,000 worth of power a month when the bins are full.

The longer a potato is stored, the higher its price to compensate for the greater input costs that are required to keep the potato in top shape.

“We grow about 40,000 tonnes of potatoes, and 15 per cent of that volume gets harvested and sent straight to the factory (direct delivery),” he said.

“There are no farmers who have direct delivery exclusive contracts. If you want to grow potatoes in Alberta, you have to have the ability to store.”

He said direct delivery are the cheapest potatoes in his contracts.

“You have power, building depreciation, interest costs. The potatoes they buy from refrigerated storage in August, don’t forget, there’s $3 million worth of potatoes in this building if it’s full. If I had that in an investment, making four or five per cent, that all has to be accounted for. Every two weeks my contract price goes up. The potatoes are mine until they are on the scale, so I take all the risk as well (in storage). It’s still a living crop.”

There are only three weeks of the year — from around Christmas to early January — when CP Farms has no full-time staff. The operation buzzes with activityfor the rest of the year to keep it running.

“Not only do you have to run the farm, I also have to keep the shop busy. I have to order the parts. We have 200 pieces of equipment we have to service every year. That takes a lot of planning” said Camps.

“That is when I do all my crop planning, I order my fertilizer. I put my plan together for this year and next year because I know where my 2026 potatoes are going to go, but I need to know where my 2027 potatoes are going to go because that’s where the grain is going to go this year. It’s a multi-year plan.”

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Alberta’s Budget 2025 earmarked a total of $5.2 million for repairs, upgrades, replacements and operational support for CDC North and CDC South.

“Investing in our crop diversification centres ensures world-class research continues to deliver practical solutions that help our producers stay competitive,” said Alberta premier Danielle Smith in a press release.

The funding supports upgrades and replacements to greenhouses, labs and administrative buildings at both sites. It also funds inputs that have increased in cost, such as fertilizer, seeds and pesticides.

“Both crop diversification centres are prime examples of how successful government-industry collaboration can be. This funding will help ensure the researchers and support staff at both locations can continue their sector-leading work,” provincial agriculture minister RJ Sigurdson said.

CDC South near Brooks is a production and research greenhouse facility and base of operations for plant health surveillance and field operations. CDC North in Edmonton serves a similar function, and is also home to the Alberta Plant Health Lab, the Bee Health Team and Alberta’s Seed Potato Repository.

“Leading U of A researchers leverage the CDC North facility to conduct applied research in support of issues and opportunities for Albertan producers, developing advancements and technologies in agriculture, food, soil science and more to improve food security and make this critical sector of our economy increasingly profitable and sustainable,” said Rickey Yada, dean of the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Agricultural, Life and Environmental Sciences.

CDC South will see $3 million for facility repairs and upgrades to go with $500,000 for operational support.

CDC North receives $1.2 million for facility repairs and replacements and $500,000 for operational support.

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A new analysis of 450 genomes from cultivated potatoes and 56 genomes of wild potato species has revealed that the potato lineage originated through natural interbreeding between a wild tomato plant and a potato-like species in South America about 9 million years ago.

This hybridization event led to the appearance of the nascent potato plant’s tuber, an enlarged structure housing nutrients underground, according to the researchers, who also identified two crucial genes involved in tuber formation. Whereas in a tomato plant the edible part is the fruit, in the potato plant it is the tuber.

“Potatoes are truly one of humanity’s most remarkable food staples, combining extraordinary versatility, nutritional value and cultural ubiquity in ways few crops can match,” said Sanwen Huang, a genome biologist and plant breeder at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and senior author of the study published on Friday in the journal Cell.

“People eat potatoes using virtually every cooking method – baking, roasting, boiling, steaming and frying. Despite being stereotyped as carbohydrates, potatoes offer vitamin C, potassium, fiber and resistant starch, and are naturally gluten-free, low-fat and satiating – a nutrient-dense calorie source,” Huang added.

Resistant starch is a type of carbohydrate that resists digestion in the small intestine and ferments in the large intestine, feeding beneficial bacteria in the gut.

Etuberosum to Solanum tuberosum

The modern-day potato plant’s scientific name is Solanum tuberosum. Its two parents identified in the study were plants that were the ancestors of a potato-like species now found in Peru named Etuberosum, which closely resembles the potato plant but lacks a tuber, and the tomato plant.

These two plants themselves shared a common ancestor that lived about 14 million years ago, and were able to naturally interbreed when the fortuitous hybridization event occurred five million years after they had diverged from each other.

“This event led to a reshuffling of genes such that the new lineage produced tubers, allowing these plants to expand into the newly created cold, dry habitats in the rising Andes mountain chain,” said botanist Sandra Knapp of the Natural History Museum in London, a co-author of the study.

This hybridization event coincided with the rapid uplift of the Andes. With a tuber, the potato plant was able to adapt to the changing regional environment and thrive in the harsh conditions of the mountains.

“Tubers can store nutrients for cold adaptation, and enable asexual reproduction to meet the challenge of the reduced fertility in cold conditions. These allowed the plant to survive and rapidly expand,” Huang said.

Study may improve potato breeding

The study’s findings, according to the researchers, may help guide improved cultivated potato breeding to address environmental challenges that crops presently face due to factors such as climate change.

There currently are roughly 5,000 potato varieties. The potato is the world’s third most important food crop, after rice and wheat, for human consumption, according to the Peru-based International Potato Center research organization. China is the world’s leading potato producer.

“It always is hard to remove all the deleterious mutations in potato genomes in breeding, and this study opens a new door to make a potato free of deleterious mutations using the tomato as the chassis of synthetic biology,” Huang said.

The study also may open the door to generate a new crop species that could produce tomato fruit above ground and potato tubers below ground, according to Zhiyang Zhang, a postdoctoral researcher at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

The potato and tomato are members of the nightshade family of flowering plants that also includes tobacco and peppers, among others. The study did not investigate the evolutionary origins of other tuberous root crops that originated in South America such as the sweet potato and yuca, which are members of different families of flowering plants.

While the parts of the tomato and potato plants that people eat are quite different, the plants themselves are very similar.

“We use different parts of these two species, fruits in tomatoes and tubers in potatoes,” Knapp said. “If you look at the flowers or leaves, these are very similar. And if you are lucky enough to let your potato plant produce fruits, they look just like little green tomatoes. But don’t eat them. They are not very nice.”

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Agriculture minister RJ Sigurdson was on hand on at Farming Smarter’s two-day field school to announce a one-time capital grant of $3.2 million to Alberta’s 12 applied research associations (ARAs).

It will allow them to focus on research into the adoption of new technology and practices.

ARAs are regional, non-profit organizations that conduct research and extension activities tailored to the specific needs of producers in their respective areas.

“The associations can extend the life of their facility’s infrastructure and equipment and reduce their operating costs,” said Sigurdson.

“The funding is intended to support agricultural research and improve competitiveness. Agricultural research in Alberta leads to tangible benefits for farmers that include higher profits and ample food supply at an affordable cost for consumers.”

Sigurdson said Canada is only one of five net-exporting countries in the world. The minister referred to Alberta and Saskatchewan as the bread basket feeding the world.

“Estimates are the global food demand will rise anywhere from 65 to 85 per cent by mid century. More and more countries are going to continue to look towards our provinces to feed the world, and research is going to be key to continuing to support our farmers and ranchers in the incredible work they do every year.”

Farming Smarter used its part of the capital grant to purchase a tractor to expand its capacity for irrigated crop research, specifically in potato agronomy. Alberta has surpassed Prince Edward Island as the country’s largest potato producer.

The province exported $930 million in processed potatoes in 2024, Sigurdson said.

“Alberta is an agricultural powerhouse. They proudly produce about one-fifth of Canada’s ag exports. With potato production contributing billions per year to Alberta’s economy, applied research associations play a vital role in supporting farmers and ranchers with top-notch research that helps producers improve and advance agriculture in Alberta,” he said.

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The report added, “crop development remains ahead of typical seasonal progress.”

Among Alberta’s cereals, its winter crops were faring the best at 68 per cent good to excellent for fall rye and 62 per cent for winter wheat. The spring cereals were led by durum at 56 per cent good to excellent, followed by spring wheat, barley and oats at 51 per cent.

Canola lagged behind the other oilseeds at 45 per cent good to excellent, with mustard at 67 per cent and flax at 60 per cent.

As for the pulses, lentils were rated at 62 per cent good to excellent, followed by chickpeas at 55 per cent and dry peas at 52 per cent.

Also, mixed grains were pegged at 75 per cent good to excellent and potatoes at 99 per cent.

Alberta Agriculture said crop spraying was two-thirds complete, well ahead of the five-year average of 49 per cent.

The province’s surface soil moisture levels of 37 per cent good to excellent continued to lag behind the five-year average of 65 per cent.

However, there were significant improvements in the good to excellent ratings from the previous week.

• Northwest 50 per cent, up 16 points
• Peace 46 per cent, up 21 points
• Central 41 per cent, up 25 points
• Northeast 40 per cent, up 23 points
• South 25 per cent, up six points.

That also generated improvements in the subsurface soil levels.

• Peace 54 per cent, up 17 points
• Northwest 50 per cent, up 18 points
• Central 42 per cent, up seven points
• Northeast 35 per cent, up 18 points
• South 26 per cent, up seven points

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NewCold’s $222 million state-of-the-art food storage facility in Coaldale’s industrial park is slated for a late-June opening date. The firm has 22 warehouses on three continents, offering a combined capacity of more than 1.5 million pallet positions.

Coaldale Mayor Jack Van Rijn was pleased with the relative speed in which NewCold agreed to open up shop in the southern Alberta community of more than 8,900 people, with other regions in Canada wanting to do similar projects.

“From the time we were first introduced to the executive of NewCold, it took 10 months… for them to be committed to the Town of Coaldale,” he said. “In comparison, they are trying to build one right now in Ontario and they’ve been at it for two-and-a-half years and they (hadn’t) even got to the development permit stage yet.”

Van Rijn made the comments at a ‘state of the region’ address in Taber earlier in 2025.

“It goes to show you through the guidance of our MLA Grant Hunter in red tape reduction in how we can move forward in getting a project the size of this in southern Alberta,” he said.

The facility will sit on 37 acres of Coaldale’s industrial park and is 320,000 square feet and 150 feet high. The cold storage facility has the capability of storing 56,000 pallets of frozen vegetables.

Van Rijn said in this case it will likely be frozen french fries, as a well-known producer of that commodity is said to be interested in leasing 100 per cent of the first phase.

The automated facility will be capable of loading or unloading a semi truck in six minutes or less without a human hand touching it. There have been 230 people building the facility, with an estimated 50-60 being employed when it becomes fully operational.

“This facility is inclined to reduce the carbon foot print associated with traditional cold storage. It uses 50 per cent less energy by employing cutting-edge insulation techniques and fully-automated processing,” said Van Rijn.

In getting the product out to global markets, NewCold, with financial assistance from the Alberta government, will partner with Coaldale to invest in the extension of Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) connectivity to the property, a necessity to reduce the environmental footprint, Van Rijn said.

The spur line to the NewCold facility is 2.6 kilometres long with costs of the $8 million project shared between NewCold and the Town of Coaldale 50/50. There is potential for other spur lines to come up in the Coaldale area if other industry comes calling. The spur line gives businesses ready access to export their products with ease and security either domestically or internationally. The investment will go into municipal rail lines to develop Coaldale into an export hub.

“The facility is a game changer for Coaldale and all of southern Alberta. This NewCold investment is the largest singular investment in the history of our community,” said Van Rijn. “We’re looking forward to the opening. This is only the first phase, the second phase is something they are very tight lipped about when it’s going to occur. This particular (phase) is 100 per cent leased out and they needed that commitment before they started entertaining the second phase. Our hope is that the construction teams will just stay there and keep building, but we don’t have any confirmation on that at this point.”

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In its second year of existence in Alberta, Spuds in Tubs Farm to School took the lead from British Columbia and has seen keen interest in incorporating potato growing in the provincial school curriculum.

The Spuds In Tubs Program began in British Columbia several years ago by a potato producer, Bill Zylman, now chair of the Canadian Potato Council. He came up with the idea to teach kids in schools about agriculture and give them an opportunity to grow potatoes in tubs.

Zylman reached out to B.C. Ag In The Classroom, and they worked out the details to run the program.

“B.C. has been doing this for 15 years or more. It started there. It would be the second year (in Alberta),” said Deb Brewin, communications and promotions director at Potato Growers of Alberta.

“We doubled our numbers this year. We have 87 kits that have gone out across the province. That equals about 4,000 students who have been involved.”

Potato Growers of Alberta is in charge of the greenhouses for the program in the province, including Edmonton, Red Deer, Calgary, Lethbridge, Taber and Medicine Hat. The association also sources the local potatoes for the kits.

Ag For Life has a website that handles registrations and manages communication with teachers who take advantage of the program.

Students learn about plant biology, soil health and sustainable food production while growing potatoes. It allows them to observe and nurture the process in the tubs, making it easier to protect the potatoes from pests, weeds and Mother Nature. It can also be used as a teaching tool for a variety of school subjects.

“It gives them a hands-on experience to grow their own food. We built it around the Alberta curriculum, so this program can fall into social studies, math, science, a ton of subjects for kids Grade 3-9. That is where the focus is,” said Brewin.

“Students have already planted. We chose an early-variety potato that will be harvested for when kids are out of school in June. At that time, they’ll have their harvest party and reap the benefits of potatoes in their pots and hopefully cook them up.”

While growing sustenance for the body, the program also grows students’ appreciation for the time and care that is required in agriculture, from planting to harvesting and delivering it to the dinner table.

Brewin recalled a story where a teacher had a special needs student who was so into the project that they wanted to forgo recess to tend to the potato project because it brought them more joy.

“Hearing those types of stories really fills my heart. Teachers are supposed ot fill out a post-project report, and we get a lot of information on what they learned and things maybe we can improve on,” said Brewin.

“Ag For Life is a pretty big deal. They supply tons of ag-related resources to teachers, they go to schools with talks on programs as well. We have a very good partnership with them.”

Russet sponsors for the project include ​Alberta Potato Industry Associates, Cavendish, Edmonton Potato Growers, FW Seed Potatoes, Independent Crop Inputs, Lamb Weston, Miyanaga Farms Ltd., Old Dutch Foods, Simplot, SLM Spud Farms and Woordman Farms.

Tuber sponsors are Grassy Lake Potato Company and Jakeco Holdings.

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Potato wart is soil-borne fungus that can reduce potato yield and quality. In 2021 and 2022, exports of potatoes were restricted from Prince Edward Island after the disease was found in some fields.

The response plan outlines protocols for when potato wart is detected in Canada (except for Newfoundland and Labrador).

New measures in the plan include requirements for users of restricted fields to implement preventative control plans and additional soil sampling and analysis requirements for restricted fields, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) said in a Thursday news release.

Seed potato certification will no longer be available for seed potatoes grown in restricted fields, as these pose significant risks for spreading the disease.

The CFIA developed the plan in consultation with groups like the Canadian Potato Council, the Prince Edward Island Potato Board, and the P.E.I. provincial government.

The CFIA said it met with growers in P.E.I. to discuss the new plan and the transition for users of currently restricted fields, which will continue to be restricted under the new plan.

The National Potato Wart Response Plan replaces the Potato Wart Domestic Long-term Management Plan, enacted in 2009.

The 2024 National Potato Wart Survey turned up no cases of the disease in Canada. The survey analyzed soil samples from fields across the country that had no previous associations with known potato wart cases.

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