Wisconsin potato industry dedicates $5m towards research
“This support stems from the great value that our growers and our potato industry see in the University of Wisconsin-Madison research team and the related research facilities,” says Tamas Houlihan, executive director of the Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Growers Association (WPVGA).
The funds will be raised by the state’s potato growers in the form of an additional assessment on their potato sales. The industry made a first step toward this commitment this past summer, when, at the request of the WPVGA, the Wisconsin Potato Industry Board increased the assessment on potato sales by one cent per hundredweight, raising it from six to seven cents per hundredweight. The Board will consider raising the assessment by another penny next year, the maximum it can be increased in a year.
“We decided the additional support was needed to make sure the relationship doesn’t end because of a shortfall or cutback in funding to the university,” explains Steve Diercks, owner of Coloma Farms and WPVGA.
“We want to make sure we are able to keep the potato team—which has worked so well for the industry—intact and vibrant.”
A two-cent increase in the assessment is expected to generate around $500,000 per year. The money will go into a fund that was recently established at the Wisconsin Foundation and Alumni Association, which serves as UW-Madison’s non-profit gift-receiving organization.
The WPVGA’s ultimate goal is to raise $10M for the fund over 10 years, with the help of additional private contributions from growers, vegetable processing companies and other allied industry members.
source: wisfarmer.com
