Although California’s water shortage will have some impact on this year’s crop of sweet potatoes, Larelle Miller, sales manager at Quail H Farms LLC in Livingston, CA, said the company still anticipates a high-quality crop. “Water has been an issue for us,” she told The Produce News. “We had to reduce our planted acreage to match our water allocation.

“California is known for its quality sweet potatoes,” she continued. “They have very smooth skin and very few blemishes. Sizing this year is off a little bit. But that just means there are fewer jumbo size and more number ones. The processors aren’t going to be very happy because the jumbos will be in short supply, and pricing will be a little higher.”

Larelle MillerQuail H Farms grows both conventional and organic sweet potatoes, owing and operating over 150,000 square feet of climate controlled sweet potato storage, including a 30,000-square-foot packing facility. “We have recently switched from our ozone treatment system to a new peracetic acid treatment system further enhancing the effectiveness of our triple washed process,” Miller said. “We are also currently developing new consumer packaging that we hope to roll out in the spring of 2015.”

Miller said the sweet potato harvest ramped up at Quail H Farms at the beginning of September. “Quality has been excellent,” she stated. Overall tonnage is expected to be down approximately 10 percent this season.

The company markets sweet potatoes under the “Quail H Farms” and “Lil’s Best” labels. “We work mostly with retail accounts, and we do have some wholesale accounts as well,” Miller said. “The foodservice sector is on our radar.”

Quail H Farms primarily markets sweet potatoes west of the Rocky Mountains. “However, we are increasing our market share in the Midwest and into eastern Canada, especially with our organic program,” Miller added.

Sweet potatoes are marketed in a variety of sizing and packing options including multiple sizes of bulk corrugated cartons, three-pound bags, reusable plastic containers, bulk 2,000-pound totes and microwaveable shrink-wrap film. Custom packs are available at customer request.

“We palletize on standard No. 1 and No. 2 wooden pallets, and we are able to accommodate CHEP pallet requests,” the website states.

Although Quail H Farms does not work with retailers on specific marketing programs, Miller said, “I believe that there are some great opportunities that we have as a company and as an industry. We have a fantastic product with a great health message that is far more versatile than a Thanksgiving side dish. We just have to work with retailers to get that message across to right demographic. The millennials are a health-conscious generation that reacts to targeted marketing. With the paleo diet craze and more young moms wanting to make their own baby food, along with the recognition by the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society and American Dietetic Association as being a superfood if you will, we have a message that can help retailers create more lift.”