Local inventor creates spud smelling sensors

An Aberdeen inventor has come up with a new technology system that he says could save a whole lot of spuds.

Marcus Junod said his invention is a weapon against the mortal enemy of every potato grower in Idaho, soft rot.

“There is no means of predicting when or where it has occurred in your cellar, and it can create thousands and thousands of dollars worth of damage,” Junod said.

He said an experienced farmer’s nose knows when that tell-tale smell of rot is in the air.

He thought, why not make something, a device, that can sniff that air 24 hours a day.

“Now I’m going to go into the star trek side of things. Basically we’re going to put a sensor net on top of the potatoes as they load the cellar. Very easy to do, and minimally invasive on operations,” Junod said.

The net of sensor tests for tiny amounts of the particles and gases released by any bad spud that can spoil the bunch.

“The market is wide open, we see this technology going worldwide. Currently the best that they have is the seat of the pants operation,” Junod said.

Junod said the plan is to test the sensor net on four cellars this year, and next year get into full production.