[LINK] The PVYn Affair

[rfmcdonald]

Robin Catherine Fullerton's 1995 dissertation Potato farmers in exile: Power, state, and the mobilization of an interest group (Prince Edward Island), provides a detailed introduction to this crisis in Prince Edward Island's potato industry.

The crisis arose as a result of a potato virus (PVYn), which was found in the seed potato system. Although it causes no harm to potatoes or humans, it is lethal to the tobacco plant. The potential threat that PVYn posed to the US tobacco industry led the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to ban the importation of Island seed potatoes and the Canadian Government to subsequently extend the ban to mainland Canada, thus denying the Island's seed potato growers access to their two major markets. As a result, this crucial component of PEI's economy, which represents in excess of $100 million annually, remained at a virtual standstill for over two years.

The issue quickly became politicized, as one might have expected. Big Tobacco in the States has deep pockets.