A recent agreement between Pest Pros, Inc., and Soil Food Web Atlantic Canada will test the use of STORECAST, "Storage Potato Disease Risk Indexing" in Prince Edward Island (PEI) Canada this storage season.
Daryl Lingley of Soil Food Web Atlantic Canada, Bible Hill, Nova Scotia, recently received a research grant to be implemented with Pest Pros, Inc., of Plainfield, Wis., to conduct field scale trials on the potato storage disease forecasting system under PEI conditions. The grant is funded through the Canadian Agricultural Adaptation Program, charged to promote the use of new technologies in Canadian Agriculture.
Under the agreement, Soil Food Web Atlantic Canada will collect and process tuber samples and conduct storage assessments on about 25 commercial fields. Pest Pros, Inc., will conduct the STORECAST disease testing and make storage rot forecasts. Lingley recently visited the lab of Pest Pros, Inc., to receive training and conduct business related to the grant implementation.
Pending a successful trial outcome, the two companies are exploring the potential for a licensing agreement for Soil Food Web Atlantic Canada to provide STORECAST testing services in the Canadian maritimes and Maine. Soil Food Web Atlantic Canada provides soil biological testing and education for soil health management. Pest Pros, Inc., is an independent crop consulting firm and plant disease diagnostic lab specializing in potato IPM.