Potato Summit Coming Up

December will be here before you know it and with it comes an important meeting for the potato industry. Chris Voight, Executive Director of the Washington Potato Commission explains.

VOIGHT: Every five years the Potato Commission holds a Potato Summit. We're bringing all the industry together; growers, processors, field men, supplier - and it's really try to identify what trends are happening and where they're going and how our industry's going to have to adapt in order to continue to meet the needs of our customers.

"Potato Summit" meeting is planned for December 15th and 16th, at the Grand Hotel in Spokane, WA. Voight says they will be looking at some other issues.

VOIGHT: This is really going to be talking not only about the marketing of our crop and that the export marketing opportunities are going to be like but it's also going to deal with grower issues that are happening right on the farm. Where are were going to be with the acceptance of GMO's, is that a possibility for the potato industry? How can we harness the micro-flora in the soil to better increase fertility and prevent diseases and what about the labor situation or aging irrigation infrastructure so it's really going to be broad-based.

The Commissioners have identified 10 issues and topics that they believe will have an important role in the industry moving forward.  National and local speakers will address those issues and provide insights into how they may impact farms and industry.

And that's Washington Ag Today. I'm Greg Martin, thanks for listening on the Ag Information Network of the West.