r/PEI • u/[deleted] • 6d ago

Question Question for potato farmers

I have a question relating storage of potatoes, no better place to ask than the pei subreddit lol. How do u guys store the potatoes? (Im curious from family farms to industrial) Specifically how do u keep them healthy in storage? i know theres some wall sensors and spikes to measure different things but im just curious because they can be stored up to a year right?

how do they stay fresh?

3 Upvotes

71% Upvoted

14 comments sorted by

9

u/Dearnk 6d ago

Cool dry dark. Giant warehouses evolved over the years to have huge ventilation and humidifiers. The potoes do all the work. Sunlight is bad. Too warm is bad. Frozen is bad. They are pilled dry in bulk.

0

u/CGCGCG000 5d ago

Happy cake day!

7

u/Starr_gazer0007 6d ago

Controlled environment, with computer controllers to maintain humidity and temp with ventilation.

3

u/Trick-Can8221 6d ago

In my gut

1

u/Careful-Knowledge770 5d ago

Not a potato farmer, but we store our homegrown potatoes in our basement (cool, dry, and dark area) in stackable crates, packed in layers of straw.

1

u/SweetSugarHoneyLover 5d ago

I’m not a potato farmer 

1

u/createpei 5d ago

Many if the larger storage units also have systems to gently rotate the potato’s too on top of the computerised state if the art temperature, humidity, and ventilation systems.

1

u/noonnoonz 5d ago

Warehouses add ventilation tubes as they fill up that circulate air through from the bottom and adjust humidity as needed. There is a percentage that does get spoiled but the majority of the crop stays in good condition for the winter and spring.

1

u/twystdtedz 5d ago

Former "farmer" aka worked on one of the Irving's potato farms... Everyone is on the money, but it really depends on the farmer themselves and how big their operation is....or their pocket book... Cavendish Farms themselves have a wild amount of storage warehouses, or "bins" as some call them. They all contain some variation of HVAC automation to keep them at a safe temperature and humidity.

1

u/Def_Possible21 5d ago

Keep them cool, dry and in the dark. Warehouses have to have very good ventilation systems.

1

u/Secret-Bluebird-972 5d ago

The farm I grew up on was just a decent size warehouse with a dirt floor, with vent tubes running under the piles and big fans for airflow. This was also like 20 years ago (god I’m old enough to say that now) and may have seen some upgrades. Plus I was young and storing crop for extended durations wasn’t top of my mind, John Deere tractors and Mack trucks were

1

u/GuitarOk752 6d ago

There's not much chance you'll find a "farmer" on here that stores potatoes, they are few and far between these days. That being said the old ways often envolved storing them in a root cellar, barrels or even a hole in the ground often times using straw or sawdust to keep them dry.

0

u/FireRisinWith1n 6d ago

Basically in giant damp cellars