A Minnesota-based seed potato company recently expanded its operations. Founded in 1945, Pieper Farms, LLC supplies seed potatoes to farmers/growers, both nationally and internationally, who then raise them to maturity, becoming the potatoes consumers buy at the store or eat at restaurants.
The company exports its seed potatoes to Africa and South America.
Cole explained that residents in those countries “don’t eat potatoes every day.”
He pointed out that Americans not only sit down to meals that include meat and potatoes, such as a burger and fries, but also eat potato chips from the store year round.
To further complicate matters, many of these countries require “stringent testing” of their potatoes. With a commercial crop, “by the time they are all harvested and shipped, the way the tests are performed, it’s too late,” Cole said.
There is high demand for potatoes in countries such as Uruguay, Nicaragua and Panama, said Cole, adding that “Venezuela has a huge need, but we’re on their no ship list. Politics.”
“In Minnesota, we sell to Uruguay and Nicaragua, but only a small amount, due to timing,” he said. “It’s not the key environment coming out of Minnesota.”
Three years ago, Nicaraguans approached Pieper Farms about providing seed potatoes to ensure a Christmas crop for their country.
As to next year’s goal, “I want us to double or triple the acres we grew,” Cole said.
“My five-year goal is to have a minimum of 500 to 800 acres per year of potato seed.”
As to the future, “my goal is for us to become the premium seed potato grower in the U.S., if not the world,” in the next five to 10 years, he said.
