Potatoes and CARES Act Pt 2

Potatoes and CARES Act Pt 2

Bob Larson
Bob Larson
I’m Bob Larson. Ag groups from across the country are lining up in the push for relief funding from the CARES Act, that designated $9.5-billion for ag producers impacted by the COVID-19 coronavirus.

One of those groups, the National Potato Council is in full support. CEO Kam Quarles says many sectors of the ag industry have significant needs as their customer base disappears …

QUARLES … “From the potato industry, it’s very significant. You’ve got all of these big institutional buyers, all of the restaurants, the hotels, all of that has just stopped. And, that is both for fresh potatoes, but then it also hits the processed side of our business.”

So, Quarles says as this plays out, it’s hard to know exactly where the potatoes will go or how long this might drag out …

QUARLES … “All of those processing facilities that are making processed potato products, they have no home for them and so you’ve got all these growers who are delivering product, largely on contract, to these processing facilities. Now seeing the facilities slowing down, some of them maybe shutting, and the echoes of this may continue, not just for the ’19 crop, but for the 2020 crop if USDA doesn’t act to alleviate the bottleneck.”

Listen tomorrow for more on the plight of potatoes and other specialty crops as they try to put a value on the damage being done to their market and their bottom line.

Previous ReportPotatoes and CARES Act Pt 1
Next ReportPotatoes and CARES Act Pt 3