OTTAWA – There seems to be little hope for this year’s Prince Edward Island potato crop after a top Canadian official suggested Thursday a break in the standoff over a U.S. blockade could be months away.

There may be a crack in the door to the U.S. market, but it’s a small one.

The incoming Republican administration and two of its key officials are pro-free trade, says Ron Krystynak, suggesting they might be more inclined to lift a ban on Prince Edward Island potatoes than the outgoing Democrats.

“We’re guardedly hopeful,” said Krystynak, Agriculture Canada’s deputy director of Canada-United States trade issues. “Realistically, I wouldn’t see any change for a month or so. A panel process could take eight or nine months.”

He said it would be four to six weeks before new staffs are in place in Washington and American consultations with international experts on potato wart fungus are complete.

The United States refused Wednesday to lift its ban on millions of dollars’ worth of potatoes from Prince Edward Island.

The Americans say they are worried about the fungus, found in part of a single field in New Annan, Prince Edward Island, last fall. Canadian officials say the real concern is last year’s bumper potato crop in Idaho and Washington state.

“As a member of the House Agriculture Committee, I recognize the importance of protecting Maine farmers from the threat posed by potato wart,” said U.S. Rep. John Baldacci in reacting Thursday to the decision by the United States Department of Agriculture. “It’s a serious concern, and I’m pleased the USDA has continued to insist on sensible restrictions. I am hopeful that Canadian agriculture officials and potato industry leaders will accept these requirements.”

Canada could send the tussle to a NAFTA trade dispute panel, but that would not likely rule until October, by which time millions of tons of potatoes could rot, hobbling Prince Edward Island’s vital industry.

The island sold $36 million (Canadian) worth of potatoes to the United States in 1999. Much of this year’s market was lost virtually as soon as the ban was implemented – the U.S. Thanksgiving and Christmas markets consume a large chunk of exports.

“The new administration will be starting to move into place next week,” Krystynak said in an interview.

“Obviously, this will be one of the issues that the government of Canada will want to raise with the new group early on in their mandate. We’ll see if there is more flexibility than there has been in the past.”

Wednesday’s formal consultation involving midlevel officials under the North American Free Trade Agreement essentially went nowhere, he said.

The Americans were unwilling to move from a Dec. 29 letter that included demands to restrict movement of Prince Edward Island potatoes within Canada’s own borders – a requirement that scared off potential buyers in other provinces.

Krystynak called it an “awkward time.”

“Who are they going to report to?” he said. “They have instructions from the previous administration and they have no new one.

“So they are bound by those until they report to the new administration and get new instructions.”