6 minute read
Meet Oregon's New State Vegetable
Hot Potato!
Meet Oregon’s newly anointed state vegetable
written by Julie Lee
AT LEAST one kind of drought is over. Oregon went 164 years without claiming an official state vegetable, and in a near unanimous vote last June, with just a handful of abstentions peeling off in favor of the onion, the Oregon State Legislature designated the potato as the official state vegetable. Potatoes now join counterpart symbols: Oregon grape, the official state flower; pears, the official state fruit; and Dungeness crab, the official state crustacean. With more than 45,000 acres in Oregon dedicated to growing potatoes, they are the number one selling vegetable in the state.
Potatoes are considered one of the original superfoods. Fiber-rich, full of antioxidants, gluten- and cholesterol-free, and low in sodium and fat, potatoes sit at the top throne of nutrition when it comes to vegetables. Providing far more potassium than bananas, potatoes can boost heart health, help lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke. The abundant fiber in potatoes also supports gut health.
When Oregon Potato Commissioner and culinary ambassador Leif Benson discovered five years ago that Oregon didn’t have a registered state vegetable, he strapped on his boots and went to work. Patience was required, with Covid shutdowns stalling progress for a couple of those years. “Oregon State Senator Bill Hansell was approached to create a bill making the potato the state vegetable,” said Benson. “With his support, and lobbyist Montana Lewellen moving all the chess pieces around at the capital to make this happen, it happened.”
Benson also had Gary Roth, the executive director of the Oregon Potato Commission, as a natural support championing the case for the potato. The idea of acquiring state vegetable status was posed by Benson in one of Roth’s very first meetings at the helm.
Roth grew up on a 300-acre farm in Scappoose and majored in agriculture at Oregon State University. After decades with the Oregon Department of Agriculture, he was ready to focus on just one commodity. “I found my perfect fit—I’m like a kid in a candy store,” he said. “One of the greatest joys of being with the commission is learning firsthand what a wonderful, healthy and nutritious product the potato is.”
Benson has traveled internationally to promote Oregon potatoes, with Japan being the biggest trading partner on the West Coast. “Oregon potatoes are very valued internationally,” he said. There are century potato farmers in Oregon, which Benson said “is a big deal.” More than 1,200 farms and ranches in Oregon have reached the 100-year milestone, a prerequisite being that a farm or ranch is operated continuously in the same family for 100 years or more. Mark Ward of Baker City is one of those honored farmers.
Ward Ranches started with a small crop of potatoes nearly 110 years ago. “My grandfather started raising potatoes in 1915,” said Ward, “and the first crop was in 1919, so we achieved century farm status in 2019.” The Ward family owns and leases multiple properties around Baker Valley for potato production, though he said they are “small potatoes” when it comes to their family’s farm size. “We can only grow potatoes on a piece of ground once every five years,” he explained. “Long rotation (equates to) good quality.”
The growing season for potatoes results in long workdays and requires perseverance. Planting commences in the last part of April, with harvest starting the last week of September. “It’s an everyday job,” Ward said. “Potato farmers not only have to irrigate and check crops but manage (blowback) from weather and smoke,” which is a rising challenge in the past decade. There’s also what Ward calls the “greed fear curve.” “So here you are in September and the potatoes are bulking. You’re increasing your yield, but how long do you let them go before you have a weather issue? You must decide when to dig to avoid a hard freeze,” he said.
Ward said the joy of farming, though, outweighs the numerous challenges. “For any farmer, when you get to harvest, whatever the crop is, whether wheat, alfalfa or potatoes, seeing the fruits of your labor go into storage is very satisfying,” he said. “Farming is either in your blood or it isn’t. It’s in your blood when you feel that sense of accomplishment and happiness when you put a crop into storage. I’m proud to be a potato grower. We love what we do, and we do it well.”
About the potato being named the official state vegetable, Ward said, “That’s my family heritage. My grandfather was a charter member of the Oregon Potato Commission. I’m very proud that the people in Oregon recognize the potato as an important part of Oregon agriculture.”
The Oregon Potato Commission donates over a million pounds of potatoes annually to the Oregon Food Bank, with some farmers, like Dan Chin of Klamath Falls, making it an annual mission to contribute to that donation. “When the Oregon Food Bank called and needed product, we’d donate,” he said.
Said Chin of the potato’s new status: “It’s awesome. There’s no question that this will help in (growing) the awareness for people in Oregon and other states that we are number four in the nation for potato production. To see it be the state vegetable makes me very happy.”
Chin said growing potatoes has evolved “quite a bit over the years. We started growing organic potatoes twenty-one years ago, getting them into Whole Foods. Our potatoes were known throughout the nation.” His passion is producing a good product and then helping to market it. “We have great help with the Oregon Potato Commission in marketing and expanding our presence in other countries; it’s been good for our growers to see the expansion into overseas markets.”
There are many ways to slice, dice, bake and fry a potato. Ward’s favorite way to eat a potato is baked with just a little pat of butter. “I’m not a ‘cheesy’ potato guy,” said Ward. “I like to taste the potato.”
Other delicious ways to prepare potatoes include roasting and serving with stir-fry salad; crisping alongside Brussels sprouts, a delicious wintery dish; and air frying and serving with a fragrant green goddess dip.
