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Potatoes USA Appoints 2021-2022 Research Committee Co-Chairs

April 28, 2021

DENVER (April 28, 2021) — Jennifer Gogan of Houlton, Maine, and Jared Smith of Alamosa, Colorado, were elected to the Potatoes USA Executive Committee as Research Committee Co-Chairs on March 11, 2020, at the organization’s Annual Meeting. This is Gogan’s second year on the board and her first year on the Executive Committee. Smith is serving his fourth year on the board and his second year on the leadership team after serving two years as a member of the Domestic Marketing and Research Committees.

Gogan, a fourth-generation farmer, is the assistant manager and part-owner of Miller Farms LLC, a seed potato farm in Littleton, Maine. The farm primarily grows for Frito-Lay and grows Lamoka, Snowden, Atlantic, dark red Norland, Caribou Russet, and Russet Burbank seed potatoes. She is also the assistant manager at Miller Farms LLC’s sister company, Aroostook Produce Distributors Inc., which works with local farmers to grow and deliver chip stock to chip plants. Gogan is looking forward to helping lead a program that studies varieties, disease management, and uses science to show potatoes are a healthy vegetable. In addition to holding a position on the Potatoes USA board, Gogan currently serves on the Maine Potato Board’s Research Committee and is a graduate of the Potato Industry Leadership Institute (PILI), class of 2013.

Smith is a third-generation farmer and has worked in the industry for 16 years. He is part-owner of Three S Ranch, Inc., which produces Russet, Red, and Yellow potatoes. As Co-Chair, Smith’s goal this year is to continue getting projects funded through the Potato Research Advisory Committee (PRAC) and to further engage the industry through the National Fry Processors Trial (NFPT) and the National Chip Program (NCP). Smith is Blanca Potato LLC’s Chairman of the Board, and he serves on the Colorado Potato Administrative Committee. He is a 2017 graduate of PILI.

Through its involvement in PRAC, the Research Committee participates in the development of national potato research priorities and promotes industry support for selected potato research projects. The committee also oversees the industry’s potato variety development activities for the chip and fry sectors through the NCP and NFPT. The committee helps keep the industry informed of the latest potato nutrition research conducted through the Alliance of Potato Research and Education (APRE).

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About Potatoes USA

Potatoes USA is the national marketing and promotion Board for the 2,500 potato farming families operating in the United States.  Potatoes USA, the largest vegetable commodity board, was established in 1971 by potato farmers to promote the benefits of eating potatoes.  For more information on Potatoes USA’s mission to “Strengthen Demand for U.S. Potatoes,” visit PotatoesUSA.com.


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