Potato News from the United States

With little fanfare, the Maine Board of Pesticides Control unanimously approved on Friday morning the registration of three new types of genetically engineered potatoes that have been developed by Simplot Plant Sciences.

Potandon Produce L.L.C., the exclusive marketing agent for Pinto Creek Co., LLC in Eloy, Arizona, announced Monday that its fresh potato season has begun in Arizona.

Washington potato producers will vote from June 9–23, 2017, on whether to continue the federal marketing order regulating the handling of Irish potatoes grown in Washington.

The Northwest Potato Research Consortium recently approved a combined $1.5 million in grant funding to 37 research projects.

Years before that french fry landed on your plate, the plant that would eventually give rise to the spud your fry was cut from was sealed away deep in a secure-access building, growing slowly in a test tube inside a locked growth chamber.

A partnership between Idaho State University and Boise State University has been awarded an Idaho Global Entrepreneurial Mission (IGEM) grant to research the application of the Humigator in potato storage.

McCain Foods USA has announced it will invest more than USD 200 million into expanding its Burley, Idaho potato processing plant, creating 180 jobs and increasing potato production throughout the state.

In the United States the potato chip category maintains a dominant lead over other salty snacks in terms of overall sales, but household spend on meat snacks is a not-too-distant rival and is gaining ground.

McCain Foods USA, Inc. announced yesterday it is expanding the voluntary recall of retail, frozen hash brown products that may contain golf ball materials with Wegman’s Brand 28-ounce bag of frozen O’Brien Hash Browns (UPC 07789036523).

The 13 major potato States held 133 million cwt of potatoes in storage April 1, 2017, up 6 percent from April 1, 2016.

Steve Gangwish of Watertown, South Dakota and Dan Moss of Declo, Idaho were appointed to the Potatoes USA Executive Committee on March 16, 2017

Today Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE: CAG) announced that it has completed the acquisition of protein-based snacking businesses Thanasi Foods LLC, maker of Duke's® meat snacks, and BIGS LLC, maker of BIGS® seeds (collectively, Thanasi).

The Texas A&M AgriLife Research plant pathology team intentionally infected potato plants with psyllids positive with the bacterium that causes zebra chip disease, in order to identify promising germplasm in the battle against the disease plaguing the US potato industry for the past 15 years.

Progress is being made eradicating the microscopic potato cyst nematodes that have been threatening Idaho’s $900 million potato industry the last decade, according to the latest update by USDA-APHIS.

Frito-Lay today announced it is voluntarily recalling select Jalapeño Flavored Lay’s Kettle Cooked potato chips and Jalapeño Flavored Miss Vickie’s Kettle Cooked potato chips due to the potential presence of Salmonella in the seasoning.

McCain Foods USA, Inc. announced today it is voluntarily recalling retail, frozen hash brown products that may be contaminated with extraneous golf ball materials

Ingredion has expanded its range of PRECISA® Crisp texturizers - a series of Functional Starch Texturizers that can help close the gap between Baked and Fried Snacks.

Snack manufacturer Snyder's-Lance, Inc. yesterday announced a CEO transition and reported preliminary unaudited financial results for the first quarter ended April 1, 2017.