Red River Valley potato growers offer plethora of packs

The trend toward packaged produce that took hold during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic still is going strong among potato growers in the Red River Valley.

Suppliers provide a variety of packaging options that offer convenience for consumers and greater profitability for themselves and their retail customers.

About 85% of the fresh potatoes from Associated Potato Growers Inc., Grand Forks, N.D., is shipped in consumer packs, said CEO Mike Torgerson.

“Our strategy is leaning toward that more and more,” he said. “The company is more profitable with consumer packs.”

The demand for consumer packs increased dramatically during that pandemic, he said.

Shipments of bulk totes and consumer packs are about equally divided at Nokota Packers Inc., Buxton, N.D., said Mike Rerick, vice president of sales.

Consumer packs range from 3 pounds to 20 pounds, with the 5-pounder being the most popular.

Unlike many other grower-shippers, Nokota Packers did not see much of a change in demand for consumer packs during the pandemic, Rerick said.

About 60% of the potatoes shipped by Ben Holmes Potato Inc., Becker, Minn., are in 2,000-pound totes, said owner Kevin Olson.

Other popular options include 50-pound cartons, 50-pound paper bags and 5-pound consumer packs.

Some shippers offer 5-pound paper bags and 1-pound bags of C-size potatoes, he added.

Only about 10% of the potatoes from O.C. Schulz & Sons Inc., Crystal, N.D., are sold in consumer packs, said Dave Moquist, an owner of the company.

Those are put up at the request of certain customers and for convenience in mixer loads, he said.

“We wouldn’t mind doing more packages,” Moquist said. “It’s just the way our business has evolved.”

The company can pack any size, from 3 pounds to 20 pounds, he said. The 3- and 5-pounders are the most popular consumer packs.

Suppliers seem to have sustainability in mind when they select their packaging materials, choosing bags that are biodegradable and recyclable.

“You have to go with the trends,” Rerick said. “We’re going to do whatever the retailers want us to do.”

But Moquist said those trends can change.

“When I first started, everybody was switching from paper to plastic because we were cutting down too many trees,” he said.

Today, he said, “There is a bit of push to go to paper bags.”

Whether paper is more recyclable remains to be seen, Moquist said.