Canada's Little Potato Company has begun its expansion in the United States with construction of a new facility in Wisconsin. The Little Potato Company and Ryan Companies, Inc., celebrated the groundbreaking for the 133,000-square-foot processing facility on the 16-acre site just north of DeForest last week. It is the first facility The Little Potato Company will have in the United States.
The company was started in 1996 by company CEO Angela Santiago and her father when they grew a one-acre plot of the tiny potatoes that they harvested, washed and bagged by hand. In the 20 years since then, the company has concentrated on selecting and growing Creamer potatoes, harvested when they are at their peak of flavor and packaged for easy preparation by consumers.
The Canadian company with headquarters in Edmonton, Alberta has invested in the development of traditionally bred varieties of Creamer potatoes. They now have varieties called "Baby Boomer," a red called "Blushing Belle," a blue potato called "Something Blue," Fingerlings and Miss Blush.
The company's products are sold in produce sections of grocery stores and other outlets in 43 states. (In Wisconsin they are found in Hy-Vee, Woodman's, Walmart and other local markets.)
The potatoes are grown on farms across Canada and the United States to ensure a year-round supply.
"We are absolutely delighted to be opening our first U.S. facility in DeForest," Santiago said.
When considering where they would build their first U.S. facility, the spud company felt that Wisconsin was a good fit because of its proximity to growers. They previously had 400 acres under contract with Wisconsin farmers to grow the tiny potatoes and expanded that to 4,000 acres for the 2016 growing season.
When completed, the building will include 11,730 square feet of office space and 121,000 square feet of warehouse and processing space as well as expandable cooler space. The facility will be used to wash, sort and pack the company's little potatoes.
The facility is being developed and constructed by Ryan Companies through its Great Lakes Region, (with headquarters in Milwaukee and Naperville, IL) and is slated to open in early 2017. During the construction of the facility it is estimated that approximately 40 construction jobs will be created.
For more information, please visit www.LittlePotatoes.com and www.ryancompanies.com.