News on Food Trends from Washington DC

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is extending deregulation to J.R. Simplot Company’s (Simplot) potato variety developed using genetic engineering, designated as Snowden Z6 (Z6 potato).

The Boards of Directors of the Produce Marketing Association (PMA) and United Fresh Produce Association (United Fresh) will each host a member vote seeking consent in support of the resolution to combine and form a new association serving the global produce and floral industry.

At the National Potato Council (NPC) 2021 Annual Meeting held virtually due to travel restrictions, Dominic LaJoie of Van Buren, Maine was elected to serve as NPC’s 2021 President and to head the grower-led organization’s Executive Committee.

New research looks at how restaurants and consumers were changed by the events of 2020 and the year of transition ahead.

With the inauguration of US President Biden a week behind us now, Kam Quarles, CEO of the National Potato Council discusses what the impact of the new administration on the potato industry might be.

From January 5-7, more than 1,000 U.S. and international potato industry members joined the first-ever virtual Potato Expo. The annual event that kicks off the year for the industry, was brought online for the first time in response to the travel challenges imposed by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

In the United States, House and Senate just approved COVID Relief and FY21 Funding Bills. The National Potato Council reviews what these bills mean for the US Potato Sector.

As total restaurant sales losses in the United States topped USD 185 billion, a majority of operators do not expect their business to fully recover within 6 months.

The National Potato Council’s annual meeting, in previous years combined with the Potato Expo, will next year be combined with Potato D.C. Fly-in in late February