New potato variety released at Maine Harvest Festival, media report

The Bangor Daily News, WABI (Channel 5), WLBZ (Channel 2) and WVII (Channel 7) reported on the release of a new potato variety developed by the Maine Potato Board and University of Maine’s School of Food and Agriculture and Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station. The Caribou Russet, which was first unveiled last spring, was officially released at the Maine Harvest Festival in Bangor, making the potato widely available to consumers for the first time. The potato is described as a russet-skinned variety with high yields that not only is suitable for baking and mashing, but also is expected to be useful to processors, the BDN reported. “Today’s release of the Caribou Russet is the result of the productive partnership between the Maine Potato Board and the University of Maine. I commend Dr. Greg Porter, his UMaine research team and the Board on their successful collaboration,” Sen. Susan Collins said in a statement. Following the festival, the Caribou Russet will be available in select stores in Maine, and in more locations as the supply increases, according to the BDN.