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Hope is not a strategy,
cautions Floyd, Chairman

“Stop hoping things will change, and make change happen,” said Allen Floyd, United Potato Growers of America chairman, when asked his advice for potato growers at the May United board of directors meeting held recently in Salt Lake City. “We need to grow potatoes to satisfy the consumer, not grow what we think we want to grow.”

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Board and Marketing Meetings

July 16, 7 a.m., Marketing Committee

July 17, 7 a.m., Board meeting

Holiday Inn

Stevens Point, Wisconsin

To register, contact George Martin at 801-517-9000 or george@unitedpotatousa.com

United Annual Meetings

January 6 & 7, 2010

Loews Royal Pacific Resort

Orlando, Florida

Out with the old,
In with the new

By Buzz Shahan, Chief Operating Officer

As shipping the 2008 potato crop winds down, what have we learned? When supply reports came in last fall, two great forces seemed to converge: the market for fresh potatoes was at an all-time high and the 2008 fall harvested crop seemed poised to record significant profitability.

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United Potato Partners Program

Q: What is the United Potato Partners Program?

A: The United Potato Partners Program has three objectives: 1. Maximize the price the potato producer receives for his annual crop. 2. Minimize the cost of gathering the market data that allows the producer to maximize price. 3. Provide manufacturers of crop input products a direct link to potato growers.

The market intelligence supplied by UPGA’s database matches supply to demand such that grower returns remain positive and stable. Financially healthy growers can afford healthy budgets. See graph below.

There is a cost to acquiring, analyzing, and implementing the data relating to potato markets. Until now, these costs have been borne by United’s growers. Corporations that supply potato growers with everything from potato handling equipment, to tractors, to field chemicals and fertilizers, irrigation equipment, and packing and packaging equipment can now, through a carefully structured program, offset the cost of the database nationally and regionally.

Q: Why form a strategic alliance between United growers and crop input manufacturers?

A: A strategic alliance is an agreement among organizations that aims toward a common objective. The objective that a potato grower has in common with a crop input manufacturer is that each party wishes to survive and thrive in the potato business. Profitability for each party depends upon the value each can derive from dealing with the other.

Q: Can each grower continue with a local retailer of their choice even though United has a relationship with a particular manufacturer at the national level?

A: The advent of United Potato Partners does not mean that the local retailer and grower relationship goes away. The grower may obtain the best possible value from his local retailer while United engages manufacturers at the national level.

Millions are spent annually to advertise products to potato growers. Is this the most effective use of an advertising budget? Can relationships between manufacturers and growers take a more effective form? The United Potato Partners Program answers these questions in a positive way.

Q: Manufacturers and retailers constantly review their marketing channels to assure effectiveness. Can that process be improved by including United in a manufacturer’s marketing strategy?

A: United has contact with 80 percent of U.S. and Canadian potato growers by providing them with market intelligence that has improved profitability. To see a manufacturer as a United Potato Partner greatly increases the level of confidence and trust a grower will place in the supporting manufacturer.

Partners