Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/15761
“I think probably the biggest challenge the USPB has is getting all the information that they have learned into the hands of growers in a way the growers can act on it and make changes on their farms.” and target our communications more appropriately for each individual grower. it has been a slow and deliberate process accomplished through grower surveys and questionnaires, which i’m sure weren’t always appreciated by growers. but our goal is to be sending each grower and industry member the information they will find most useful without overwhelming them with mail and e-mail. Q. WHAT DO YOU THINK GROWERS NEED TO KNOW AND UNDERSTAND ABOUT THE USPB AND ITS PROGRAMS? a. the usPb generates an enormous amount of useful information and data, but getting it in front of the right sets of eyes is the only way it becomes useful. it would be impossible for any one farm to absorb all the information that is generated by just one of the marketing committees, so it’s critical we get summary information into the right hands so growers across the country can make use of all the great work the usPb is doing each year. until you get on the usPb and spend two days at the annual meeting, it’s really hard to get a handle on all the board does. From developing markets in countries across the globe, to helping supermarkets improve the display of their produce, to researching what consumers want in their pantries, it’s a wealth of information. i think probably the biggest challenge the usPb has is getting all the information that they have learned into the hands of growers in a way the growers can act on it and make changes on their farms. i think many growers only look at the amount of money that comes off their invoices and goes to the usPb without considering how much our contributions truly can do for the industry. the international marketing Department typically uses assessment dollars to leverage nearly $6 million from the federal government to help with market access programs in our target export markets. while the Domestic marketing Department conducts research on everything from how people want their potato chips to taste, to what affect acrylamide has on consumer decisions, to how to make potatoes a more convenient choice at home. there are significant challenges as per capita potato consumption continues its decline, but i’m convinced that without the usPb, that decline would be much more significant, and we would not be positioned nearly as well as we are to work toward addressing our industry challenges. PG www.potatogrower.com 21