September 2022
Dear partners in produce,
As always, I hope this letter finds you in good spirits and good health. As we enter September, a fresh crop of potatoes is once again knocking on our door. It’s knocking a few days later this year as we had a wetter and cooler Spring than we are used to. Once the rain stopped however, we have had great growing conditions in the Skagit Valley, and we were able to keep the fields well irrigated. Early reports from the fields sound quite exciting with good size and good quality.
We are hoping to start our packing plant on Thursday, September 15th, but if the potatoes aren’t ready that day we will start no later than Monday, September 19th. Reds, whites, and yellows will be available at start-up and purples will be coming in right after that. We will pack all varieties fresh from the field through early to mid-November. After that 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.
You may recall we installed some automation equipment last year including a box and bale stacking robot. In a tough labor market, the automation came in very handy. This equipment worked almost flawlessly through the year, and we can’t wait to have it a part of our packing line again this year.
Some exciting news for our company this year is that we have hired a new employee who was previously a field manager for a large fertilizer and chemical company. He comes with over 30 years of experience in the potato industry and has long been relied upon in Skagit Valley for helping local farmers make the best decisions for their crops. In the couple of months that he has been with our company he has already been a big help by being another well qualified person in the field looking over the potato fields for disease and plant health.
You can always check our consumer pack options and see the Nelson family story on our website at www.doublenpotatoes.com. We are looking forward to starting a new season with our wonderful customers as well as seeing our 2022 crop come out of the ground. Scott Wharton is looking forward to handling all of your colored potato needs through the 2022 season.
Sincerely,
Ryan Schols, Chief Financial Officer