Today, the ban on the import of PEI potatoes into the United States has been lifted.
CBC reports that the PEI potato growers are restricted to shipping the potatoes into
the United States in "50 pound bags".
I strongly suspect that this is the reason why we still see 5, 10, and 20 pound bags
of potatoes and other vegetables in Canadian supermarkets... US package size
restrictions. I suspect it is too costly for Canadian producers to package in
kilograms for Canada, the smaller market, and pounds for the US, the larger market.
Can anyone on the list know some hard facts to support my assumptions?
greg
Saskatoon SK Canada
>From CBC web site: http://cbc.ca/news/indepth/background/pei_potato.html
Lastest information at:
http://cbc.ca/cgi-bin/templates/view.cgi?/news/2001/04/26/potato_lk_010426
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Along with keeping the exclusion zone announced
two week earlier, the U.S. Department of
Agriculture said potatoes must be cleaned to get rid
of dirt that could contain spores, treated with a
sprout inhibitor, shipped in consumer packs of no
more than 22.5 kilograms, and clearly labelled
"Product of P.E.I." The ban on seed potatoes
would also continue.
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