Capital Press: Fee system may be crucial

A group of potato processors, distributors and Oregon State University extension specialists evaluate some early selections of potential potato varieties in Klamath Falls, Ore. Funding for potato cultivar research is now being supported by the Potato Variety Management Institute based in Bend, Ore. For more information, visit www.pvmi.org. - Photo courtesy of PVMI

Fee system may be crucial
Congress mulls cut of federal research earmark

Mateusz Perkowski
Capital Press Staff Writer

February 2, 2007

The fees farmers must now pay to grow proprietary potato varieties developed by universities in Oregon, Idaho and Washington may prove crucial in funding the development of new cultivars in the future - especially now that Congress is contemplating a cut in important federal earmarks for research.

Last year, the potato commissions in those three states began to enforce licensing and royalty payments for proprietary potato varieties through the Potato Variety Management Institute, a non-profit corporation.

PVMI was formed to bring in additional dollars for research and marketing, but given the current political climate, it may end up being a substantial source of funding for the Tri-State Breeding Program - which includes researchers from Oregon State University, Washington State University, Idaho State University and the University of Idaho.

"If PVMI is in place in the future, the whole program will be much more stable," said Jeanne Debons, executive director of the non-profit organization.

Debons gave an overview of the fee system to growers at the Oregon Potato Conference in Corvallis, Ore., Jan. 26. To use one or more licensed cultivars, farmers within the tri-state area must pay $250 annually. The fee for all other U.S. growers is $500, and those outside the country must pay $1,000.

By 2011, the institute is expected to generate an estimated $500,000 over its operating expenses of about $150,000 annually, Debons said. PVMI's income may actually surpass these estimates because of recent international interest in using the Tri-State Breeding Program's potato lines, she added.

"It's not going to the universities as a blank check," she said. "It's going specifically to this work."

Apart from funding research, Debons hopes to build brand names for different potato cultivars similarly to what has been done with Golden Delicious and Granny Smith apples. In Britain, for example, grocery retailers' chains sell exclusive potato varieties that can't be found anywhere else.

"They want to get people to their stores," she said, adding that the marketing strategy could benefit growers who create market niches for specific cultivars. "Hopefully we'll see an increase in demand for new varieties."

Mateusz Perkowski is based in Salem, Ore. His e-mail address is mperkowski@capitalpress.com.