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Dear Readers -
Williston is one of the better potato growing regions in the country. The potato industry is being affected by the recession, health, environmental and irrigation issues. There are major changes underway, and we believe that "with change also comes opportunity". While Williston is world famous for our "Bakken oil", we believe in diversifying our economy and the day will come when we are also world famous for our potato's too! While French fries may be out of favor today, it is during these slow times that we need to posture ourselves for growth in the future. With pressures on health and nutrition, even the French fry industry is finding ways to adapt to the changing consumer. We thought you might like to see a snapshot of some of the issues facing the potato industry today.
Sincerely,
Barbara Peterson
Writer, Williston Wire
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| ConAgra Potato Plant in Prosser, Washington to Close |
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TriCountyHerald.com
 PROSSER -- When ConAgra Lamb Weston employee Bob Brumley heard all of the company's Prosser workers were being called to the plant for a meeting Wednesday morning, he thought they'd hear more downtime was being scheduled. He didn't expect to be told the potato processing plant would close in two months. "Our operations manager started crying when he told us," Brumley said. See Entire Story.
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| Potato Plant's Closing will have Big Impact on Region |
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Yakima Herald-Republic
PROSSER -- It's hard for George and Judy Austin to imagine life without the potato plant. They have worked at Prosser's largest private employer a combined 62 years.
In fact, they met 22 years ago when George swept around Judy's work station on packaging line No. 8. They married within a few months. "You might say I swept her off her feet," he said. On May 30, it all will come to an end. See Entire Story. |
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Loss of Rail Could Hurt McCain's Plant in Maine |
Bangor Daily News
AUGUSTA, Maine - Representatives from several of northern Maine's largest employers warned Thursday that the loss of Aroostook County's only railroad would cause ripple effects throughout the state's manufacturing and industrial sector.
The comments came during a legislative hearing on a proposal for $20 million in bonds that would allow the state to purchase roughly 240 miles of privately owned railroad tracks between Millinocket and Madawaska. See Entire Story.
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Small Reptile Could Impact Manitoba Fry Plants |
The Globe and Mail
Scuttling beneath low-ranging juniper scrub under a wide prairie sky, an anomaly of nature is gingerly avoiding the open sand nearby. Although the northern prairie skink spends the winters hibernating in burrows below the freeze line, in summer the sun-scorched grains are too hot for its tiny claws. Nor can it venture into the forest on the other side of the juniper scrub, for this little reptile can survive only in an environment of sandy soil and mixed grass. See Entire Story. | |
| Recession Crimps Demand for French Fries in Eastern Canada |
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The Globe and Mail
 Joe Brennan and his fellow potato growers in New Brunswick are bracing for the fallout from the French fry meltdown. Mr. Brennan, who is also the chairman of Potatoes New Brunswick, the province's potato marketing board, says he will have no choice this planting season but to cut production at his farm in Bath, N.B., after hearing the bad news from his key customer. |
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McDonald's Shareholders Behind Pesticide Survey for Spud Growers |
Capital Press
 Farmers who grow potatoes that end up as french fries at McDonald's and other fast food restaurants have begun taking surveys about how they produce the crop.
About a year ago, McDonald's bowed to pressure from activist shareholders and agreed to make an effort to cut pesticide usage on spuds used to make its famous french fries. See Entire Story.
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| McCain Foods Focuses on "What's in Dinner" |
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CNW
McCain Foods (Canada) today unveiled a journey that will see the company change its frozen food products to be made from simple ingredients like people would use if they made them from scratch. With the McCain It's all good(TM) commitment, McCain products will be great tasting, made with simple ingredients and be nutritionally sound. This commitment is a first in the frozen food category. See Entire Story.
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| McCain Foods Launches Sweet Potato Fries in India & US |
 McCain Foods India Pvt Ltd, the Indian subsidiary of McCain Foods Ltd. Canada, has introduced a unique product - Masala Fries for the Institutional customers. The product has been introduced at Hosts 2010 being held in Mumbaii annually. It is India's first and largest hospitality tradeshow. See Entire Story.
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US Sweet Potato Fries.
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New Irrigation Pipeline to Aid Farmers in Washington |
The Seattle Times
 Orman Johnson's spuds are out of the ground now, piled in sheds longer than football fields, each stuffed with enough tubers to feed Seattle for half a year.
Like most of Washington's 9 billion pounds of potatoes, the farmer's thirsty crop is grown where less rain falls annually than Seattle may get in six weeks. And the well water that supplies Johnson's farm is disappearing.
So the federal government is doing what once had been unthinkable. It's
building a new stretch of pipeline and
draining more water from the Columbia
River system to aid farmers.
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| Potato Plants Commended for Energy Efficiency |
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EPA
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is recognizing the first three frozen fried potato processing plants to earn the Energy Star for superior energy performance. These plants perform in the top 25 percent for energy efficiency nationwide and, on average, use nearly 20 percent less energy when compared to similar plants across the country. See Entire Story. |
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Othello - French Fry Capital of the World |
Horsebytes
Shoestrings, thincuts, regulars and wedges.
That's tater talk, descriptive terms for the different forms of the all-American french fry prepared by the J.R. Simplot Company plant in Othello. The company is a major supplier for McDonald's.
It's likely I have been up close and personal with their products. I worked at the McDonalds in Boulder, Colorado to support my horse in the year break I took after high school. All though I can't be sure now, the boxes of fries that I slid out of the freezer could very well have been from Othello. See Entire Story.
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Potato Expo 2010 Focuses on Consumer's Wants and Needs |
 Understanding the needs and wants of consumers was just one of the many resonating messages growers heard during the Process Sector Breakout of POTATO EXPO 2010. More than ever, the US potato industry needs to be proactive in its efforts to present sound and credible information about "America's Favorite Vegetable." See Entire Story.
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Mon-Dak Ag Open August 3-5, 2010 |
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 It's time to mark you calendars for The Mon-Dak Ag Open. The 2010 Ag Open is scheduled August 3-5. More information will be released soon! Ag Open Home Page
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Upcoming Williston Events |
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04/06 Mon-Dak Energy Alliance Meeting
Held at the Airport International Inn, Williston, ND. The Keynote Speaker will be Governor John Hoeven. The social will begin at 5 p.m., with the dinner beginning at 6 p.m. Governor Hoeven will begin his speech at 6:30 pm. The cost to attend is $15 payable at the door.
To see a full list of events, please visit the
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Williston Wire
Williston Wire
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