Potato News from Northern America

Key Technology (Key), a member of Duravant’s Food Sorting and Handling Group, introduces its COMPASS® belt-fed optical sorter at Pack Expo Las Vegas booth W-1040.

J.R. Simplot Company is undergoing restructuring, leading to layoffs in Boise and abroad. Though the scope is unclear, employees report job losses on LinkedIn. The company hasn’t filed a WARN notice and remains focused on adapting to market changes.

Regulations on food safety, labour scarcity, and environmental pressures are driving the need for smarter, more sustainable solutions. Waste doesn’t just affect visual quality. It disrupts automation, clogs up machines, and costs money. 

Utz Brands, Inc., a leading U.S. manufacturer of branded Salty Snacks and a small-cap value staples equity, has reported financial results for the Company’s second fiscal quarter ended June 29, 2025. 

Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has announced its fiscal fourth quarter and full year 2025 results and provided its outlook for fiscal 2026. The Company also announced "Focus to Win," a comprehensive plan designed to improve execution and drive profitable growth.

Gov. Mills and UMaine leaders reopened the modernized Aroostook Farm after a USD 3 Million upgrade, boosting Maine’s potato research with advanced tech to speed new variety development like the Caribou Russet, supporting jobs and the agri-economy.

Potatoes top the charts as America's favorite veggie for the 9th year, per the 2025 Consumer Attitudes & Usage study. With 81% eating them weekly, belief in their nutrition and value as performance fuel is at an all-time high.

After years of effort, the USDA has officially deregulated a 120-acre field near Shelley, Idaho, from the state's pale cyst nematode (PCN) quarantine program, marking a major milestone in the fight against this potato pest.

Lawmakers toured Aroostook County to explore Maine’s potato industry, seeing innovative tech and learning how policy affects farming. The trip aimed to boost understanding of agricultural challenges and support.

PepsiCo, a leading global food and beverage company whose portfolio includes iconic brands such as Pepsi, Lay’s, Gatorade, Quaker, and Doritos, reported its results for the second quarter of 2025.

A proposed class action lawsuit claims that The Campbell’s Company has misled consumers by marketing Cape Cod potato chips as free from preservatives, given that the snacks contain the common food additive citric acid.

Joseph Ifeanyi Ulasi leads a groundbreaking project to boost late blight resistance in diploid potatoes by introgressing novel Rpi genes from wild species. Using Solanum verrucosum as a genetic bridge, he advances resilient breeding for future crops.

Simplot plans to acquire Belgium-based Clarebout Potatoes, uniting two family-owned frozen potato leaders. The move aims to boost European market presence and sustainability, with operations continuing and expanding across 23 global sites.

The Ferrero Group and WK Kellogg Co has announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Ferrero has agreed to acquire WK Kellogg Co, for USD 23.00 per share in cash, representing a total enterprise value of USD 3.1 billion.

Ahead of National French Fry Day, McCain Foods found Americans eat over 17 pounds of fries yearly—Virginia leads at 21. Crispy-outside, soft-inside is the top texture. Fry types, seasonings, and dips vary, but 63% say fries can be a main dish.

Texas A&M AgriLife Research, the Texas A&M Potato Breeding Program, Barrett Potato Farms and Springlake Potatoes Inc. will host the annual Texas Potato Field Day on July 16 in Springlake.

Taste of Maine Potato Chip Co. is building a USD 65 million, 96,000 sq. ft. plant at the former Loring Air Force Base in Limestone. This major project is one of the region’s largest commercial developments in decades.

First Insight’s latest study, The Quiet Takeover of Private Label, finds that differences between private label products and national brands have blurred so much that most consumers can no longer distinguish between the two.