Lane believes that chemigation, VRI and other
emerging technologies give him the best
chance to succeed.
"You always regret buying
the cheapest, but you never
regret buying the best that
you can afford."
know what each other need far enough in
advance," he says. "We need to know how
much of which varieties to grow."
While he notes that it is difficult to
predict what future consumers will want
to spend money on, Lane says that in order
for processors to have the varieties and
amounts they need at the right time, threeto five-year plans need to be developed
and effectively communicated all the
way up and down the supply chain. "A
commercial guy needs to know what his
buyer needs, and then he needs to let the
seed grower, who is me, know. All that
takes time."
As Lane sees it, that disconnect is just
another hurdle to be cleared, one he trusts
the industry to make it over. After all,
if you can turn a city kid into a farmer,
anything's possible. PG
www.potatogrower.com 37
