Spudman July/August 2023 - 24

Pathways to sustainability
Tips to make storage work better for growers and the environment
POTATO
SUSTAINABILITY
ALLIANCE
John Mesko
Executive director
The Potato
Sustainability Alliance
(PSA) works to improve
on-farm sustainability
by addressing issues
such as soil preparation,
planting, irrigation and
harvest. Increasingly,
the sustainability story
of potatoes is focusing
on storage.
" There are two
Proper potato storage is crucial to the operations of growers such as Heartland Farms in Hancock,
Wisconsin, which has on-site potato storage capacity of more than 5 million hundredweight.
Photo courtesy of Heartland Farms.
seasons with potatoes, " said Bill Orr. " The
growing season and the storage season.
While potatoes often spend more time in
storage than in the field, it's an overlooked
area, especially in terms of sustainability. "
Orr is the Canada technical
representative with 1,4 Group, a potato
storage quality company. 1,4 Group is
a member of PSA and a great example
of how the organization collaborates
to increase awareness and adoption of
sustainable storage methods on North
American farms.
From reducing greenhouse gas emissions
and energy usage to crediting farmers
for steps toward sustainability, Orr sees
opportunities to capture economic and
environmental benefits with efficient storage.
He offered six tips for sustainable storage.
CLEAR THE AIR
Proper venting is essential to the survival
of potatoes in storage.
" You can bring good potatoes into
storage, and they can quickly go bad, " Orr
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Spudman * July/August 2023
said. " But you can't bring bad potatoes in
and get them good. "
" You can bring good
potatoes into storage,
and they can quickly go
bad. But you can't bring
bad potatoes in and
get them good. "
- Bill Orr, Canada technical
representative with 1,4 Group
Cycling out carbon dioxide gas that
can discolor potatoes is necessary. While
traditional systems preserve potatoes, Orr
said some modern ventilation technology
can extract carbon dioxide without the
constant use of large fans. Some systems
can repurpose the air, while others vent
portions of a bin to reduce energy costs and
environmental impact.
ENERGY SAVERS
North American facilities routinely
run high-speed fans to maintain an ideal
storage environment for potatoes. But
the cost of keeping fans running can
add up, especially during high-demand
energy seasons.
" When electricity prices begin to increase
in North America, as they have in other
parts of the world, we'll start to see storage
facilities have to cut back on energy
consumption, " Orr said.
In high electrical cost areas such as
Ontario, Orr said farms are investing in
sustainable energy sources such as
solar power as an alternative. Another
option is variable speed drive controllers
to regulate airflow and fan speed. A
University of Idaho research study found
that maintaining constant low airflow
during holding periods can save as much
as 33% in fan energy costs for potatoes
stored for 60 days and up to 45% energy
savings for potatoes stored for more
than 125 days.

Spudman July/August 2023

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