Potato News from the United States

Pringles® has plucked a new flavor from the far reaches of the gaming world, answering a question pondered by many Halo fans: what would a 'Moa Burger' taste like?

On Tuesday, Feb. 23, the IGEM Council awarded Boise State University with a grant in the amount of $291,770 to assist industry partner, Food Physics Group, with research and development of pulsed electric field processing on potatoes to reduce acrylamide and sugars.

The National Potato Council (NPC) welcomed yesterday’s reintroduction of the bipartisan Farm Workforce Modernization Act by Reps. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and Dan Newhouse (R-WA) and urges its rapid passage in the House of Representatives.

Key Technology introduces Global View™, a patented new software-driven capability for their VERYX® digital sorters. This unique software optimizes product quality, increases yield, collects more sophisticated data and reduces the need for manual inspection.

Vanmark, an industrial potato and produce processing equipment manufacturer, announces the promotion of Jack Grote to Sales Manager.

Event organizers of the National Restaurant Association Show today announced the cancellation of the 2021 National Restaurant Association Show, which was scheduled to take place May 22-25 at McCormick Place in Chicago.

Jake Blauer is the newly hired post-harvest potato physiologist at Washington State University.

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.

Food and food packaging are highly unlikely to spread COVID-19, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a reminder last week.

Bedford Industries introduces CloseIt® Bio-Clip, its new plant-based bag closure containing 100% USDA certified biobased content that is commercially compostable.

This case study by Intralox at US subsidiary of snack manufacturer Calbee shows how a proper choice of belt type can reduce both cleaning labor and cleaning time. 

On February 17, 2021, the Mexican Supreme Court released a draft ruling that would overturn a 2017 lower court decision preventing the Mexican federal government from implementing regulations to allow the import of fresh US potatoes throughout the country.

United States potato exports continue to recover but remain behind previous year levels. Exports for the first six months of the marketing year, July – December 2020, are behind the record levels set in 2019.

February is Potato Lover's Month and Arrowfarms companies Morning Kiss Organic and Gold Bell are introducing new, compostable paper bag potato packaging.

Bill Guenthner of Guenthner Farms was elected WPVGA Board President for 2021. The WPVGA Associate Division Board of Directors elected Chris Brooks of Central Door Solutions to be its President for 2021. The WSPIA Board of Directors elected J.D. Schroeder of Schroeder Bros. Farms, President for 2021.

The Washington Potato Co. facility in Warden still smolders the next morning and smoke fills the air after a fire broke out in a potato dehydrator the afternoon of Jan. 21, prompting a response from fire departments across Grant and neighboring Adams counties.

Long-time potato and vegetable growers Norm and Marv Worzella of Worzella & Sons, Inc., Plover, Wisconsin, were inducted into the Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Growers Association Hall of Fame at the industry’s annual awards ceremony held February 3, 2021.

In the end, 2020 was a pretty good year for Idaho’s iconic potato industry, but it sure wasn’t easy.