September 2021
Dear partners in produce,
I hope this letter finds you in good spirits and good health. The calendar has rolled all the way around to September again, which means we are on the doorstep of another potato season here at Norm Nelson. We had a much drier and warmer than average spring and summer here in Western Washington with only a few instances of measurable rain since May. Owners Jerry and Ryan Nelson did a great job managing the fields taking the weather into consideration. Despite the warm weather, reports from the field are coming in with good quality and better than expected sizing.
At this point we are looking at starting our packing plant on Tuesday, September 14th. Reds, yellows, and whites will all be available at start-up with purples coming in around September 20th. We will pack all varieties fresh from the field through mid-November, then our reds, yellows and purples will come out of our storage system for the remainder of the packing season. Our white potatoes will be available until sometime in December, dependent on movement.
Our product lineup is always headed up by the premium quality “Double N” label. Our “Golden Seal” label is for that cost sensitive portion of the market. We offer a US #1 2nd label A in “Golden Seal” and starting this year we will also offer our #2 potatoes in the “Golden Seal” carton. Carton labels will designate the difference between grades. You can always check our consumer pack options and see the Nelson family story on our website www.doublenpotatoes.com.
Through our off-season we’ve made some considerable investments in our packing plant geared towards being more efficient and reducing risk of injury to our employees. This includes 1 more automated box filling station as well as box and bale stacking equipment.
In our industry, potato harvest is always the most exciting time of the year. We finally get to see the results of all the hard work the farm put into growing the crop. It also means we get to start working with all our fantastic customers again. Scott Wharton is looking forward to handling all of your colored potato needs through the 2021 season.
Sincerely,
Ryan Schols, Chief Financial Officer