Potato Review

www.potatoreview.com POTATO REVIEW MAY/JUNE 2021 49 INTERNATIONAL NEWS Fourth-generation grower is newNPC president THE National Potato Council has elected Dominic LaJoi, a fourth- generation St John Valley potato farmer, as its new president. He will serve a one-year term with the Washington, D.C.-based interest group, during which he will lead the council through its transition to working with President Joe Biden’s administration, help coordinate its ongoing response to the pandemic-altered potato industry and generally pursue the industry’s priorities on a national level. He will also host the annual National Potato Council’s summer meeting in Presque Isle in July, if COVID-19 safety protocols allow it. If the meeting takes place, it will be the first held in Aroostook County in the council’s history. Investors acquire family- owned equipment supplier A PROMINENT manufacturer of international potato equipment in the United States has announced an agreement to its acquisition by a group of Idaho investors. Double L, which manufactures farm equipment in the Intermountain West of the US, is to be acquired by a group made up of Teton Management Group, Pickett Equipment, and the Idaho Legacy Fund, all of whom are headquartered in Idaho and led by individuals with experience in the agriculture industry. Founded in 1975, the family business provides harvesting and handling solutions for potato farms throughout the US and is located in the heart of the largest potato producing region in the nation. Over the past 45 years, it has grown to cater for global markets. Decreasing acreage THE United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has released its report on the number of potato acres planted in 2020. Potato growers planted only 921,000 acres in 2020, more than 47,000 acres fewer than in 2019 and 105,000 acres fewer than in 2018. It’s the lowest number of acres recorded by USDA in at least 100 years. Potato versus onion for state title THE Oregon Potato Commission in the US has been working for a couple of years to get its product recognised as the state vegetable. Executive Director Gary Roth firmly believes the potato should be the state vegetable, saying: “There are more than 250 agricultural and food products, grown, raised and harvested in Oregon. And out of those 250, potatoes rank No. 8 overall and they are by far the most widely grown vegetable.” He added that potatoes return more than $200 million a year to farmers. Local onion farmer Mark Owens has also applied to make onion the state vegetable, but Gary said onions return half the revenue that potatoes do and are 11th on the commodities rankings. A popular ‘alternative’ POTATO is increasingly being used as a main ingredient in the alternative cheese market. US company Loca Food uses potatoes to recreate a plant-based version of classic queso cheese sauce having piloted it two years ago in San Francisco with plans to launch in restaurants, retailers, and ballparks in 2020. These plans were brought to a halt when the pandemic began. GOOD PLANeT also makes mozzarella cheese shreds and slices from coconut oil and potato starch, and HeartBest uses potato and tapioca starch for its alternative shredded cheese and cream products.