Potato Council releases industry report, lobbies in DC
Quarles
| The National Potato Council last week released a report, “Measuring the Economic Significance of the U.S. Potato Industry” and lobbied Congress on its priorities for the farm bill. According to the report, the U.S. potato sector was responsible for $100.9 billion in economic activity in 2021 including: ▪ $10.8 billion in agriculture production and agribusiness services; ▪ $49.1 billion in processing, wholesaling, and retail; and ▪ $41 billion in food service industries and household consumption. |
Quarles
| In a call to reporters, National Potato Council CEO Kam Quarles said the report is important in convincing members of Congress and their staffs to pay attention to issues important to potato growers. Quarles noted that the council is part of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance, which has made 109 recommendations to Congress on fruits, vegetables, dried fruit, tree nuts, nursery plants and other products. But Quarles said that programs to help the potato industry gain access to foreign markets are particularly important. He noted that the industry had a long but successful struggle to improve access in Mexico and is trying to increase market access in Japan. Twenty percent of U.S. potatoes need a foreign market, Quarles said. The industry is also interested in incentive grants to help beneficiaries of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program buy more potatoes and to make sure that the Agriculture Department’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has the funding it needs, he added. Read the report at https://www.nationalpotatocouncil.org/spudnation/. |
