Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island – Agriculture and Agri-Food
The Honourable Gail Shea, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, Regional Minister for Prince Edward Island (P.E.I.) and Member of Parliament for Egmont, on behalf of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz, announced today that the Harper Government is investing $1.5 million to support the P.E.I. potato industry in addressing recent challenges with tampered potatoes.
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada will work with the P.E.I. Potato Board to assist producers, packing sheds and processors to enhance their efforts to detect and remove foreign material from potatoes. These funds will enable P.E.I.'s potato farmers to acquire and install equipment to detect and remove foreign material.
Quick facts
- The federal government is committed to supporting the industry maintain the confidence of consumers, processors, retailers and food-service buyers.
- Today's federal investment is in addition to the recently provided $1.4 million cost-shared initiative committed by the federal and provincial governments under Growing Forward 2.
- As tampering is a criminal offense, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is leading the investigation into the instances where foreign objects were found in harvested potatoes. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has been supporting this ongoing investigation.
Source: AAFC