A number of potato players throughout the supply chain have taken the decision - or are rumoured to be taking the decision - to ban the CIPC method of inhibiting from their stores.
Many pundits see ethylene-based systems as the best replacement, and the use of such systems is growing rapidly in the UK.
The European Union is undertaking a review of the licensing of all pesticide active ingredients, including ethylene, which has been granted Commodity Substance Approval by the Pesticides Safety Directorate in the UK.
The European Community review has three possible outcomes.
Ethylene may be included on an approved active substance list known as Annex 1, after which national approval for the use of the pesticide can be sought in each of the member states.
The treatment may be granted EU-wide Basic Chemicals Approval, in much the same way as it has Commodity Substance Approval in the UK.
It is unlikely, but there may be no agreement on EU-wide regulations and, in this event, the UK Commodity Substance Approval regulations will continue to apply.
Richard Barnes, managing director of biofresh, a leading manufacturer of ethylene treatment systems for potato stores, claimed it is a strong contender to CIPC methods. He said: “Fogging CIPC in refrigerated potato stores is currently the most popular method of inhibiting sprouting for most packers and growers, but the very nature of the application method will lead to uneven coverage of the crop within a store. With a maximum residue level now in place, this will inevitably raise concerns amongst packers and retailers that some samples may exceed this level. Ethylene, on the other hand, is a natural gas that will leave no detectable residue.
‘’As well as the sprout control effect, there is also increasing interest on the use of ethylene in seed potato stores - our trials have shown significant increases in tuber numbers in a range of varieties,” he added.
Barnes maintains that ethylene has been proven as an effective sprout inhibitor. “It’s been used for many years as a means of controlling the ripening process in crops such as bananas,” he said. “Our worldwide trials have proven that the carefully controlled and monitored introduction of low levels of pure ethylene is a highly effective method of inhibiting sprouting in the potato crop.”
biofresh has consulted closely with the UK Pesticide Safety Directorate, which is acting on behalf of the EC in reviewing the application.
Barnes said: “At biofresh, we will focus on innovating, developing and marketing ethylene control and monitoring systems specifically for the potato industry; both seed and ware. Since we installed our first commercial ethylene system in 2003, we are proud to say that we now have major packers MBMG, Branston, QV Foods and Solanum as customers, as well as a large number of growers and distributors in Europe, the US and Japan. I believe there is a very bright future for ethylene systems in potato stores.”
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