Potato Grower

Ten-wheeler truck after ten-wheeler truck rolls by on Airport Road southeast of Aberdeen, kicking up gravel and a familiar, harvesty cloud of dust. Ritchey Toevs has just a few minutes to sit and talk about his career in the Idaho potato industry while his harvest crew pulls out after finishing up Burbank harvest and heads down the road to start in on the Clearwaters. This is the 43rd potato harvest Toevs has been a part of since coming back to the family farm upon completion of his animal science degree from the University of Idaho in 1976. Despite his self-effacing demeanor, Toevs has in that time become one of the most respected voices in Idaho's potato industry. He's the kind of guy who doesn't let a word escape his mouth unless it has been carefully measured in his mind and will contribute positively to the conversation at hand. And he firmly believes that for individual growers to succeed, there needs to be a free flow of conversation both casual and serious. "Ag people are among the best operational managers in the world. But what we haven't always done very well is strategic planning, especially on an industry-wide level," says Toevs. "Growers are doggedly independent, but to remain independent, we'd better find things we can do together. We have to find a unified voice and be strategic about what we chase after and ask for in the political and regulatory arena." Toevs has made his voice heard in the industry for a long time, having served with the National Potato Council, the U.S. Potato Board (now Potatoes USA) and, most recently, as a commissioner with the Idaho Potato Commission. "Being involved gives you the opportunity to meet people who see the big picture," he says. "It's pushed me out of my comfort zone a lot of times. But we can only influence change when we see change coming. If you're involved, more often than not you end up in the right place." Toevs certainly seems to have consistently put himself in the right place. The farm under his stewardship has grown to operate on about 3,200 acres, with 1,000 acres of potatoes, most of them bound to be processed into fries. Since the early 1990s, Toevs has also grown his own seed. For years his seed farm was on high desert west of A cellar with a newly renovated ventilation system awaits the truckloads of freshly harvested potatoes that will soon fill it. WWW.POTATOGROWER.COM 9

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