Frankel to head national spud co-op
Frankel to head national spud co-op
Lee Frankel has taken the chief executive officer position of the United Potato Growers of America and resigned a similar post with the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas, where he served for 12 years.
In a note that he e-mailed to many in the industry, Mr. Frankel said he greatly enjoyed his years with the FPAA but is looking forward to this new challenge. He will remain with the FPAA through the end of the year. Allison Moore, FPAA spokesperson, said that the association's board is scheduled to meet Dec. 4, at which point it will discuss its options and announce its future plans. She said that a search committee is expected to be named to conduct an extensive search to fill the FPAA CEO position.
Mr. Frankel was in Mexico on FPAA business and was unavailable for comment, but in his note, he wrote: "The current [FPAA] staff is outstanding in their knowledge, judgment, passion, enthusiasm, experience and ability to serve the membership and the industry, and they will keep the FPAA moving forward. In addition, I am committed to helping the FPAA and its membership to ensure an effective transition to a new era."
In his new position, Mr. Frankel will head what may be one of the larger Capper-Volstead cooperatives in the fresh produce industry. United Potato Growers of America Chairman Albert Wada of Wada Farms Inc. in Pingree, ID, said that the group represents more than 70 percent of the potato acreage in the United States. The organization has divisions in 10 states with on-the- ground staff members who work with the grower members. In addition, it has an affiliation with the Potato Marketing Association of North America and the United Potato Growers of Canada. Jointly, these three co-ops represent about 80 percent of the close to 1.5 million acres of potatoes farmed in the United States and Canada.
Mr. Wada said that the co-op was founded in 2004 for Idaho potato growers but expanded the following year to encompass the entire United States. The Canadian affiliate was formed in early 2006.
The goal of the organization, according to its current chairman, is to bring production for both fresh and processed tomatoes in line with demand. He said that over the past six years, demand has been falling while production has been increasing. Fresh demand has dropped 2-4 percent annually on average, he said, while the growers continue to improve their ability to produce potatoes on a per-acre basis, increasing yields by about four hundredweight sacks per acre per year. This represents about a 1.5 percent increase in yield per year.
The UPGA has spent a lot of time and energy gathering information to paint an accurate picture of the North American potato industry and has developed complex economic models to gauge and predict supply and demand.
Using its power as an agricultural co-op, the UPGA has imposed planting restrictions on its voluntary members since its inception. Mr. Wada said that 2004 was a very bad marketing year for the fresh potato industry, characterized by high production and low prices for virtually all production areas. That year has been used as the baseline season for production. In 2005 and 2006, member growers were asked to cut production by 10 percent from their 2004 numbers. In 2007, a 15 percent reduction was imposed, and for 2008, the association has told its members to plant 20 percent less acres than they did in 2004.
Mr. Wada said that these efforts have succeeded in stabilizing the fresh- market price of potatoes, but he said that most growers still are not making a profit. "We are not losing our [rear ends] anymore, but we aren't making a reasonable return on our investment. We are not expecting huge margins but margins that any sane business needs to operate."
Recently, the UPGA also began imposing weekly shipping restrictions, using 2004 figures as the baseline. Mr. Wada said that a complicated formula is used to ensure fairness and indicated that the concept is still in its developmental stage. But the idea is to limit shipments each week to meet demand. Overall production might be down, but the market is still made on a weekly or daily basis depending on how many potatoes there are to buy, he said.
The association has operated for the past year without a chief executive officer; the staff has been led by Chief Operating Officer Buzz Shahan. Mr. Wada said that Mr. Shahan has done an excellent job and will continue in his position. He indicated that the UPGA board wants to take the organization to the next level and has hired Mr. Frankel to do that. He said that Mr. Frankel's trade association and international experience should serve him well in this new position.
In a note that he e-mailed to many in the industry, Mr. Frankel said he greatly enjoyed his years with the FPAA but is looking forward to this new challenge. He will remain with the FPAA through the end of the year. Allison Moore, FPAA spokesperson, said that the association's board is scheduled to meet Dec. 4, at which point it will discuss its options and announce its future plans. She said that a search committee is expected to be named to conduct an extensive search to fill the FPAA CEO position.
Mr. Frankel was in Mexico on FPAA business and was unavailable for comment, but in his note, he wrote: "The current [FPAA] staff is outstanding in their knowledge, judgment, passion, enthusiasm, experience and ability to serve the membership and the industry, and they will keep the FPAA moving forward. In addition, I am committed to helping the FPAA and its membership to ensure an effective transition to a new era."
In his new position, Mr. Frankel will head what may be one of the larger Capper-Volstead cooperatives in the fresh produce industry. United Potato Growers of America Chairman Albert Wada of Wada Farms Inc. in Pingree, ID, said that the group represents more than 70 percent of the potato acreage in the United States. The organization has divisions in 10 states with on-the- ground staff members who work with the grower members. In addition, it has an affiliation with the Potato Marketing Association of North America and the United Potato Growers of Canada. Jointly, these three co-ops represent about 80 percent of the close to 1.5 million acres of potatoes farmed in the United States and Canada.
Mr. Wada said that the co-op was founded in 2004 for Idaho potato growers but expanded the following year to encompass the entire United States. The Canadian affiliate was formed in early 2006.
The goal of the organization, according to its current chairman, is to bring production for both fresh and processed tomatoes in line with demand. He said that over the past six years, demand has been falling while production has been increasing. Fresh demand has dropped 2-4 percent annually on average, he said, while the growers continue to improve their ability to produce potatoes on a per-acre basis, increasing yields by about four hundredweight sacks per acre per year. This represents about a 1.5 percent increase in yield per year.
The UPGA has spent a lot of time and energy gathering information to paint an accurate picture of the North American potato industry and has developed complex economic models to gauge and predict supply and demand.
Using its power as an agricultural co-op, the UPGA has imposed planting restrictions on its voluntary members since its inception. Mr. Wada said that 2004 was a very bad marketing year for the fresh potato industry, characterized by high production and low prices for virtually all production areas. That year has been used as the baseline season for production. In 2005 and 2006, member growers were asked to cut production by 10 percent from their 2004 numbers. In 2007, a 15 percent reduction was imposed, and for 2008, the association has told its members to plant 20 percent less acres than they did in 2004.
Mr. Wada said that these efforts have succeeded in stabilizing the fresh- market price of potatoes, but he said that most growers still are not making a profit. "We are not losing our [rear ends] anymore, but we aren't making a reasonable return on our investment. We are not expecting huge margins but margins that any sane business needs to operate."
Recently, the UPGA also began imposing weekly shipping restrictions, using 2004 figures as the baseline. Mr. Wada said that a complicated formula is used to ensure fairness and indicated that the concept is still in its developmental stage. But the idea is to limit shipments each week to meet demand. Overall production might be down, but the market is still made on a weekly or daily basis depending on how many potatoes there are to buy, he said.
The association has operated for the past year without a chief executive officer; the staff has been led by Chief Operating Officer Buzz Shahan. Mr. Wada said that Mr. Shahan has done an excellent job and will continue in his position. He indicated that the UPGA board wants to take the organization to the next level and has hired Mr. Frankel to do that. He said that Mr. Frankel's trade association and international experience should serve him well in this new position.
