Quality assurance for New Zealand’s seed potatoes
The certification of seed potatoes in this country is provided by the New Zealand Seed Potato Certification Authority, which runs a national quality assurance programme. The Authority is a subcommittee of Potatoes New Zealand. Its seven members include Potatoes New Zealand directors, as well as processors, potato seed growers and potato seed merchants.
The Authority is a completely independent agent of the potato industry, and has the task of ensuring seed potatoes are true-to-type as possible and meet pest and disease tolerances. This is done by contracting independent, specialised inspectors drawn from international quality assurance company SGS group and the New Zealand crown entity AsureQuality to visually inspect crops in the field as well as tubers after harvesting.
Growers do not have to be part of the scheme and there is no compulsion for growers or seed buyers and merchants to use the Authority’s services. However, if they do not, they cannot sell certified seed in New Zealand. This, of course, is what potato growers want, so they know they are buying a quality product.
