PSI Bulletin: December 2025
No. 12/25 SUBSCRIBER EDITION
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WISHING OUR READERS A MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR
Dear Subscriber,
Welcome to you latest monthly bulletin from Potato Storage Insight. In this last edition of 2025, there's the usual best practice guidance and technical insight feature. We have also included prospectus information for our forthcoming training course next March plus the regular snippets and forthcoming event info you've come to expect...
If you are not a regular subscriber, please visit www.potatostorageinsight.com/plans or call Adrian on 07970 072260.
For information on our forthcoming storage course please click here.
Best practice
Storage management at this time of year would ordinarily be moving into a fairly static period with a low level of interventions (primarily fan use).
Unfortunately, many stores are still too warm as there has been a lot of mild weather and, for those without refrigeration, trying to capture some very isolated periods of cool air temperature has been challenging.
Automated controls always come into their own when this happens. It also reinforces the benefit of refrigeration for supplementary cooling when it is proving difficult to pull crops down to the long term holding temperature you need.
Going into the Christmas period, higher temperature values in a store will warrant some additional attention compared with the normal routine. Condensation risk remains high and there is added sprouting pressure for short dormancy crops, especially those not treated with maleic hydrazide (MH).
Where MH has been used, uptake has been quite variable this season notably in crops where the foliage started to senesce early. However, the consensus on its use remains in favour as, providing we can get a residue of around 6 mg/kg or higher, the product will provide residual control of sprouting that is so important for continuity of sprout suppression between applications of other products.
Demand for sprout control treatments remains high. Ethylene systems have been initiated in many stores, whilst other stores have already receive two applications of products such as spearmint oil, orange oil or 1,4-dimethylnaphthalene (DMN).
Softening problems in storage have been reported widely, notably in varieties which were unirrigated or suffered from early break of dormancy.
Consistent with the variation in crop status, there has been a lot of variability reported in frying quality. Markets have been particularly volatile with some varieties that normally command a premium suffering from low demand or even being rejected entirely by some supply chains given the wide range of choice available.
Please ensure that any stores running over the Christmas holiday still get checked frequently as conditions inside can change dramatically with variation in temperature, humidity and sunshine hours. Condensation in particular is a potential problem whenever there are changes in the weather and, if allowed to develop without any intervention by the store manager, can quickly contribute to rotting or sprouting problems. A personal presence in stores is also important for detecting equipment failures (such as a frozen-up fridge coil or fan motor failure) that won't necessarily be detected by remote control software.
Technical insight
Potato Storage Handbook 2025/26
Here's some more information about the new Potato Storage Handbook (above) which was launched last month at the BP2025 show in Harrogate.
Adrian Cunnington has been involved in producing this type of best practice guidance since 2001 when the first of three BPC Store Managers' Guides was launched, co-written with Bob Pringle.
The last full guide was released in 2016 when Adrian authored the AHDB Potato store managers' guide.
Now, following the collapse of AHDB Potatoes in 2021, Adrian has joined forces with Warners Publications, the publishers of Potato Review magazine, to bring you this new reference and advisory standard. The content of the Potato Storage Handbook 2025 is compiled by Adrian Cunnington and Stephanie Cornwall, editor of Potato Review.
The new updated handbook follows a similar style to previous guides but brings in some relevant commercial advertising to the mix. This reflects the need to secure external funding for the guide, so that it can continue to be made freely available to potato producers and store managers.
Although the content was initially launched in hardcopy only, it has already been uploaded to make it available online in an easy-to-read Heyzine flip-book format (below):
The content has been wholly written from scratch, with all-new photography included too.
Particular emphasis has been placed in the new handbook on energy use & efficiency, ventilation, health & safety and new generation sprout suppressants.
Readers can select the handbook in the format they prefer by going to https://britishpotato.co.uk/industry-updates/the-potato-storage-handbook-2025-2026-edition/ Hardcopies incur a £5 postage charge.
PSI would like to thank Warners and all their advertisers for the support they have provided in the production of this new handbook.
CUPGRA Conference: 9/10 December
Cambridge University Potato Growers Research Association (CUPGRA) held its 36th Annual Conference earlier this month. As ever, the event was very well supported and featured a strong speaker line up.
Matt John, from AgReserves, an American land and agriculture investment organisation, was the opening speaker and showed some of their extensive potato production systems the organisation is operating in the Pacific north-west region of the USA. The scale of some of the storage was particularly impressive to this delegate!
Belinda Clarke, from Cambridge-based Agri-Tech E, was next to speak and gave a talk highly focused on getting effective innovation into our sector across all disciplines. There is plenty of scope for improvement in this area but organisations like Agri-Tech E are leading the way trying to facilitate the uptake of new technologies across agriculture.
Anthony Gardiner from G's based his presentation around effective communication and illustrated this with a number of examples from the internationally-based salads producer. A theme of his talk was when to be public with communication and when not to be which is a key skill when dealing with consumer-focused businesses.
After lunch, the focus was on the use of science and technology for effective change. Ankush Prashar from Newcastle University spoke about the potential use for imaging techniques in identification of crop stress.
Rob Hancock from James Hutton Institute, talked about tuber formation and the role growers can play in optimising this process.
A series of presentations followed from a number of CUPGRA supported PhD and post-doc students on each of their current projects focused across a wide range of technical challenges in potatoes.
The Eric Allen Memorial Lecture was given by Sarah Roberts whose presentation showed the vital role the crop canopy plays in the interception of light and its conversion into yield. It is interesting that this factor has had such a bearing on crop yields in 2025 given the early start to planting and the large number of days with record hours of sunshine.
The first day concluded with an industry-wide forum debate on the potential use of precision-bred potatoes over the next decade, highlighting the potential for GE technology but also flagging some of the likely barriers to its introduction.
Day 2 featured agronomy-focused workshops in the first session from the Pepsico R&D team, Marc Allison/Martyn Cox and Bill Watts plus Drummond Todd of JHI speaking on breeding potential form the Commonwealth Potato Collection. This was then followed by presentations focusing on nutrition from Mark Stalham, Marc Allison, Elizabeth Stockdale & Gracie Tucker. The afternoon presentations formed another business-focused session looking at the strategic development of potato businesses.
AC
PSI 2-day Potato Store Management Course 2026
On 11/12 March, we will be running our PSI annual two-day, certificated, residential training course at Greetham Valley Hotel near Oakham, Rutland. Trainers will be Adrian Cunnington and Glyn Harper. There's a £60 early bird saving available for bookings made before 6 January. The course also offers delegates a chance to take the BASIS Stored Potatoes qualification subject to further tuition and an exam in spring 2026.
Here's more information:
The training is a participative course for growers and store managers who are involved in the day-to-day management of potato stores. The course is classroom-based but follows a tried and tested format and will include talks, group discussions and practical interactive sessions, focusing on all aspects of potato storage. There will be opportunity for delegates to raise specific concerns relating to their own businesses and for these to be addressed during the course on a 1:1 or group basis. Delegate numbers are limited to 16*, so early application is recommended. Areas covered will include:
Store management principles
Storing potatoes to meet market needs
Basic physiology for storage
Recognition, biology and control of storage diseases
Recognition, biology and control of storage pests
Store loading strategies
Drying, wound-healing and pull-down
Managing skin finish for pre-pack/fresh markets
Managing processing quality
Store ventilation and optimising airflow
Condensation control
Sprout suppression strategies
Seed store management
Storage buildings and control systems
Store monitoring
Practical store operation
Carbon dioxide management
Energy efficiency & cost control
Health and safety
Scenario challenges
Tutors for the course will include Adrian Cunnington of PSI and Glyn Harper, both formerly of Sutton Bridge Crop Storage Research. Adrian Cunnington is an accredited BASIS Trainer.
Course fees includes lunch and refreshments each day and course dinner on the evening of Wednesday 11 March 2026. Each participant will receive a certificate on completion of the course. Delegates can claim BASIS CPD points and NRoSO points providing they attend the course in full**.
Bed and breakfast accommodation for Wednesday 11 March is recommended and, where required, will be at the Greetham Valley Hotel & Conference Centre, Wood Lane, Greetham, Oakham, Rutland. LE15 7SN.
Early-bird course fees feature a £60 discount inc VAT at £498 (non-residential) or £594 (residential) but are only available for applications made before 6 January.
Details subject to change or cancellation without notice.
**BASIS & NRoSO points subject to confirmation.
Optional examination for BASIS Certificate in Crop Protection (Stored Potatoes)
All Potato Store Management Course participants will be offered the option to take the exam for this BASIS qualification at an extra cost of £633 inc VAT in June 2026. This can be reserved at the outset or may be requested after completion of the course. It is not available for standalone tuition.
Details of the BASIS syllabus are at https://basis-reg.co.uk/documents/syllabuses/10920.pdf
If you wish to participate, please download your application form from the PSI website here. If you have any questions, please email adrian@potatostorageinsight.com or call +44 (0)7970 072260.
SDF/PSI Strategic Potato Day 2026 reminder
This technical event focusing on storage - sponsored again by Farm Electronics and UPL - will be running for its third iteration in 2026. It is hoped to extend the breadth of the event to include pre-storage handling and sorting. Organisers SDF & PSI are now taking expressions of interest for exhibitor stand space with the event being held on Wednesday 20th May.
If you run a storage-focused business and would like to have a presence, please contact either Adrian Cunnington on 07970 072260 or Simon Faulkner on 07850 649719.
Snippets
BP seminars
The seminar sessions from the Harrogate BP2025 event are now available online.
Synopsis subscription changes
Every Synopsis bulletin is issued monthly to paid-up subscribers without access restrictions. The cost of a full subscription is £114+VAT per annum. Group rates and concessions are available on request.
Recently PSI has modified its subscription structure. Readers will be charged at the outset and on each anniversary on one of the following dates: 31 January, 30 April, 31 July or 31 October.
Forthcoming events
If you are hosting a potato or agricultural industry event, please send details to admin@potatostorageinsight.com. Key dates for your diary with relevance to the potato sector in the coming months in UK and Europe include:
Happy New Year! January 2026
Wed 14 & Thu 15 SAC Consulting Potato Store Managers' Course 2026, Perth
Guest: Adrian Cunnington (PSI)
Contact tel: 01224 711123 or email: sacapp@sac.co.uk
Thu 15 GB Potatoes Annual General Meeting www.gb-potatoes.co.uk
The Milner, Station Road, York, YO24 1AA. 11,30am
February
Thu 5 SACAPP Conference: for details & registration email sacapp@sac.co.uk
Thu 12/Fri 13/ The Potato Partnership Regional Results Meetings at
Thu 26/Fri 27 Hereford (12), Essex (13), Perth (26) and York (27), 0930-1230
March
Wed 11 & Thu 12 PSI 2 day residential Potato Store Managers' Course
Greetham Valley Hotel, Oakham, Rutland
for a prospectus see above or email: adrian@potatostorageinsight.com
June
Tue 16- Fri 19 European Association for Potato Research: Joint Section Meeting - Agronomy and Post-Harvest, Warsaw, Poland www.eapr.net
Please note that you, or a colleague, can subscribe to Synopsis at any time by going to potatostorageinsight.com and clicking on SUBSCRIBE. We can also now take payments by credit card. Call Adrian on +44 (0)7970 072260 if you have any questions.
Subscriptions: please note that, under our new quarterly billing process, detailed above, we will issue invoices as individual subscribers reach the end of each quarter following the anniversary of their last payment. Future subs. will therefore be invoiced at either the end of January, April, July or October. A full year's subscription is great value at just £9.50/month (£114 + VAT per annum), so please renew promptly. Unpaid subscriptions will be closed within 8 weeks of invoice issue. Thank you.
Synopsis is written by Adrian Cunnington and published by Potato Storage Insight Ltd., 45 Main St., Gedney Dyke, Spalding, PE12 0AJ. UK.
© Potato Storage Insight Ltd. 2025
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