Potato Accelerated Release Program

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s (AAFC) Potato Accelerated Release Program began in 1998. It is a two-phase process to fast track the release of promising potato selections developed at the Fredericton and Lethbridge Research and Development Centres of AAFC to the producers. In phase one, 10-15 new selections are offered to potato producers each February for two years of non-exclusive field testing. These early favorites are typically at year six of a testing and selection program that traditionally took about twelve years. For a fee of $100 per selection, plus applicable taxes, growers receive a limited quantity of breeder's selection seed and non-exclusive rights to conduct their own field performance and quality evaluation trials for two years. In phase two, following the non-exclusive testing, AAFC invites potato producers to submit cash bids to procure a further three-year period of exclusive testing. At the end of this testing, or sooner at the request of the producer and farmers, an eight-year, renewable license to commercialize a selection may be negotiated. In 2018, in consultation with growers’ representatives, AAFC began the process of modernizing its potato breeding and commercialization programs. This process is currently still in progress.