SUMMERSIDE, Prince Edward Island – Exhaustive inspections of Prince Edward Island farms for potato warts could have an unintended side effect: the discovery of other pests that could hurt exports, a Canadian farmers’ organization says.

Last week, island farmers were granted unrestricted access to markets in the United States for their potato crops after 10 months of having their spuds turned back at the border because of the unsightly potato wart fungus.

The temporary restriction gave an advantage to American potato farmers from Maine to Washington. Cutting P.E.I. out of the market blunted the effect of a glut of potatoes on North American markets at the time.

But even with U.S. markets reopened, Danny Hendricken of the National Farmers Union said he is still chafing at the conditions imposed on farmers under an agreement letting P.E.I. potatoes back across the border.

He said inspections by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to certify every island potato field clear of the potato wart fungus over the next three years are unnecessary.

As a result, there is a “small chance” that the certification process by the agency may find pests they are bound by law to report, which could give American regulators an excuse to shut down the industry again, said Hendricken.

“I hope that isn’t the case. The likelihood isn’t great, but who knows?” he said.

Hendricken said he and other growers also have concerns about the vagueness of many of the provisions in the agreement, including what constitutes a time of the year “conducive” to the potato wart fungus.

The Americans closed the border to P.E.I. potatoes after the highly contagious potato wart fungus, which renders potatoes unmarketable, was discovered in the corner of a single island field last October.