Grand Forks, ND – Black Gold Farms, an industry leader in the potato industry, has kicked off their summer red potato harvest with a five-month, locally grown program. The locally grown program transitions through all of their summer potato growing locations including Texas, Florida, Missouri, Arkansas and Indiana.
The locally grown program is showcased on pack with specially marked tags that highlight fresh and local messages. Also included is a QR code that links to an educational video showcasing the local growing region and community programs supported by Black Gold Farms. In addition to readily available on-pack messaging, there are opportunities for retailers to work with Black Gold Farms to develop regionally specific campaigns or customizable point-of-sale messages to emphasize Black Gold Farms product displays in store.
Black Gold Farms has a history of growing potatoes near their customers. In 1985, they developed their first “distance farm” to fulfill a customer request of decreasing food miles. This expanding business model for distance farming now includes farms in eleven states and has helped Black Gold meet retail and consumer requests for locally grown produce.
As a fourth generation family farm, Black Gold Farms has been growing potatoes for over 80 years and 2012 marks their second year in the fresh tablestock market. Because of their size, experience, scope and expertise in the potato industry, they have developed an extensive distribution network, which has helped them build a year-round red potato program. With locations in both traditional and non-traditional red growing regions they offer retailers a seamless red potato program, including supplies extending across all the summer months.
Glen Reynolds, National Director of Produce Sales remarked, “The Black Gold Farms brand has been synonymous with high quality potatoes, superior customer service and sustainable farming for decades. It was only natural that the Halverson family expand their business beyond the chip potato industry to include fresh tablestock potatoes.” Reynolds continued, “Black Gold Farms experience and geographic diversity has provided a real opportunity to offer retailers a consistent and local supply of red potatoes from a single-source supplier on a year-round basis.”
Black Gold is currently harvesting and packing red potatoes in their Pearsall, TX location and has recently started harvest in North Florida and harvest is just around the corner in Missouri & Arkansas.
Reynolds concluded, “It’s true that many potato suppliers offer a year-round supply of potatoes, but Black Gold Farms is the only grower in the United States that can tout itself as a year-round, single-source grower, with a geographic diversity that affords a locally grown program for summer crop red potatoes. This is a real advantage for our retail customers.”
Black Gold Farms is a fourth generation family farm and grower, shipper, marketer of all types of Irish potatoes, sweet potatoes and peanuts with an extensive network of farm locations throughout the United States. Black Gold Farms is committed to doing business that provides for ongoing quality, innovation and transparency with all of their business partners.
Source: Black Gold Farms
