22 POTATO GROWER | FEBRUARY 2018
Curzio Caravati is not a big-
time commercial farmer. He
doesn't pretend to be. Nor,
he says, is he a scientist.
What he feels he is, though, is
someone with something to
offer. He is, in his own words,
"the biggest unpaid potato
promoter in America."
Raised in Switzerland
by Italian-born parents,
Caravati grew up far removed
from production agriculture.
As a young adult, he was a
successful sports equipment
salesman, working for
American companies such
as Nike and Riddell, which
led him to move to the U.S. in
1990. Five years later was the
start of his farming career.
By Tyrell Marchant | Photos courtesy Curzio Caravati
Curzio Caravati grows
hundreds of potato
varieties in micro-plots
(growing bags) on three
acres in southeastern
Wisconsin.