This report presents results from the Potatoes section of the Natural Heritage Trust project “Benchmarking to Improve Irrigation Management in South Australia’s South East” (Project Number 990042). The same process was carried out with the South East winegrape industry in the 1999-2000 season. This project follows on from similar work undertaken by Primary Industries and Resources SA in the Riverland district of South Australia. The aim of this project was to develop a module that could be used by grower groups to assess irrigation management and make comparisons across a group of sites. A pilot group of irrigators was formed to test the process of benchmarking performance using a series of quantitative indicators. This also enabled a series of irrigation best management practices to be identified, through case studies and consultation with the group. Potatoes are a major irrigated crop in the South East, produced for both fresh and processing markets. The industry generates around $25 million in gross farm gate income, with annual production of approximately 103,000 tonnes (Binks, 2000). Water resource management is an important issue in the South East currently. There is momentum in the region for a change away from the present area-based water licensing system to a volumetric based system. With these changes approaching, the use of benchmarking and objective indicators by growers or companies to assess their own irrigation performance is seen as a potentially powerful mechanism for improving the effectiveness of water use. The project was carried out by members of PIRSA Rural Solutions’ Irrigated Crop Management Service, based at Struan. Technical assistance was also provided by staff from SaFries, (part of McCain’s group), based at Penola.