Have you ever thought about how much a potato moves, conveys and drops between ground and table? Probably not. Even though I’ve been in this business a long time, this is the first year I’ve really observed the full process because we’ve made some major investments in our farm and business operations that allowed us to expand significantly.
We increased our Iowa acres and made a big capital investment in washing equipment and cold storage. So in 2021, more than any other year, I have become aware of the potato journey through the planting, growing, harvesting, washing and packing processes.
Through every step we are looking for best practices that meet the needs of our retail partners.
As we were designing our new facilities, we were very conscientious about limiting how much our potatoes moved, conveyed and dropped to help guaranty an aesthetically pleasing consumer product. Also, rather than piling potatoes on the floor, we chose to store our Iowa potatoes in crates holding 3,000 pounds each. This allows us to handle the potatoes more gently and cool them faster. Our
environmental control system allows us to test multiple areas of the storage facility to monitor appropriate temperature and moisture levels extending the product life span.
On the front end of the process we are constantly looking for the best varieties that suit Iowa soils as far as quality, yield and growth. To that end, we planted three Russet varieties with two varieties showing really good success. Now we’re working on larger profiles and more consistency to increase marketable yield. We also grew three different red varieties. One variety in particular has been a pretty adaptable potato with good skin, color and positive yield. I feel keeping diversity in growing potatoes is important.
Harvest was a really intense eight weeks. I am proud to say that our team shined this season. We added young people from the community to our Summertime team and trained them on potato grading, sorting and food safety. We’re located in a suburb of Des Moines. While there is plenty of farmland surrounding us, not many kids are growing up on farms. It was good to see a younger generation step up, work early mornings, long days, hot days and really take pride in what they’re doing. Hopefully, they are developing an appreciation for agriculture along the way. 
Overall, we had a great growing season. Our facilities are significantly improved as are our growing practices. Most importantly, we continue to learn and build for the future. Now we’re looking forward to packing and selling our Iowa grown potatoes!