The 2024 Maine Potato Summit took place on January 3rd – 4th at the Smith Wellness Center at Northern Maine Community College in Presque Isle. Numerous Maine potato growers, industry partners, family members, and farm leaders attended the two-day event, which included several guest speakers, vendors, and sponsors promoting services and industry supplies. The event provided a great opportunity for attendees to meet and mingle with industry friends from around the area.
Summit presentations covered a wide range of topics this year, as well as updates from the National Potato Council, Potatoes USA, and Maine Board of Pesticide Control. See the full list of speakers below and be sure to download their presentations to find a wealth of information and statistics regarding our industry.
This year’s summit wouldn’t have been possible without our incredible sponsors and vendors. Please see the full list below.
Speakers
Download PDFs of each speaker’s presentation by clicking on the title in green.
Mike Wenkel – NPC Update
Mike Wenkel is the Chief Operations Officer for the National Potato Council (NPC). NPC is the voice of U.S. potato growers and industry members in our nation’s capital. NPC protects growers’ interest in Washington, D.C. by addressing issues that affect the potato industry, from policy issues debated in Congress to regulatory issues proposed by federal agencies.
Andy Robinson – Wrangling Weeds Within Potatoes
Andy is the Extension Potato Agronomist and Associate Professor at North Dakota State University.
Jeff Miller – Prepping Your Seed for Optimal Performance
Jeff is a plant pathologist and President and CEO/Principal Field Investigator of Miller Research LLC in Idaho.
Bee Chim – Optimizing Crop Health: Nutrient Management Strategies for Sustainable and Land-Efficient Potato Production
Bee is an Assistant Extension Professor at UMaine Cooperative Extension and teaches at the University of Maine at Presque Isle in the Agricultural Science and Agribusiness Program.
Tyler Mackenzie – Successes & Challenges with PVY in New Brunswick: Factors involved in PVY Spread and its Effective Management
Tyler is a Research and Development Coordinator at Potatoes New Brunswick’s Agricultural Certification Services lab.
Jeff Miller – How Much Pesticide is on My Plate
Jeff is a plant pathologist and President and CEO/Principal Field Investigator of Miller Research LLC in Idaho.
Andy Robinson – Mashed Mysteries of Subterranean Shenanigans and Aerial Agents
Andy is the Extension Potato Agronomist and Associate Professor at North Dakota State University.
Ibrahim Kutay Ozturk – Powdery Scab Management
Kutay is an Assistant Extension Professor and Potato Plant Pathologist Extension Specialist at the UMaine Cooperative Extension.
Andrei Alyokhin – Potato Virus Management
Andrei is a Professor of Applied Entomology at the University of Maine.
John Pietroski – Maine Board of Pesticide Control Update
John is the acting Director and Manager of Pesticide Programs for the Maine Board of Pesticides Control.
Sponsors
Vendors
Active Intelligence Drone Services
Arthur Carroll Insurance Agency
Nichino America, Inc. offers several crop protection solutions for potato growers in Maine. TORAC® Insecticide is effective against Colorado potato beetle, leafhoppers, thrips, potato psyllid, and aphids. MONCOAT MZ® Fungicide protects potato seed-pieces by suppressing black scurf and Rhizoctonia stem canker (Rhizoctonia solani), Fusarium dry rot (Fusarium sambucinum; F. coeruleum), and Silver scurf (Helminthosporium solani) while MONCUT® Fungicide offers control of black scurf (Rhizoctonia solani) in an in-furrow at-plant application.
“Soleno offers a complete range of agricultural drainage products including 3 types of perforated pipe with and without filter sheaths and a vast array of fittings and couplers. Drainage tile helps manage the groundwater level, reduce compaction and erosion, and increases water capacity in soil. Improved soil results in increased productivity and higher yields.”