Farms in Belarus have begun the mass potato harvest

September 2, Minsk /BELTA/. Belarusian farms have started the mass harvesting of potatoes, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food told BELTA. As of September 2, potatoes have been harvested from 4.03 thousand hectares, which is 7.9% of the total harvesting area. 85.52 thousand tons of potatoes have already been dug up with an average yield of 212.1 centners per hectare. In terms of harvesting pace, agricultural organizations in the Mogilev region are leading, having harvested 13.2% of the plan. The Gomel region ranks second, where the crop has been dug up from 9.5% of the planned area, and the Brest region ranks third (9.3%). In the Minsk region, 7.9% has been harvested, in the Vitebsk region - 4.1%, and in the Grodno region - 2%. The highest potato yield is in the farms of the Vitebsk region - 260.4 centners per hectare. The Ministry of Agriculture and Food noted that the potato harvest is expected to be larger than last year's. At the same time, the areas for planting the crop remained at the 2009 level. This year, potatoes are to be harvested from 51 thousand hectares. -0-