Under the current agreement between the United States and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, potatoes grown in fields that tested positive can only be sold in the processing market.
As we mentioned earlier, 62% of all potatoes grown in the Saint-Amable region are intended for sale in fresh markets, for consumption, for sale in grocery stores.
The two problems which arise are the following: firstly, varieties intended for the processing market are different than those intended for the fresh market. This is a major, immediate issue. Secondly, the processing market in Quebec is a market supplied by producers of processing-variety potatoes, which are covered by a marketing agreement with the certified processors association. Marketing contracts and agreements already meet 60% of their needs.
This means that at this time, there is nowhere in Quebec that can process crops from Saint-Amable, which were originally intended for other markets.