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Potatoes USA hosted Spud Ranch in August, an invitation-only culinary immersion that brought culinary and menu decision-makers from five national foodservice chains to Montana for hands-on potato education, menu innovation, and a visit to a potato farm. Every operator rated the experience a 5 out of 5 and left with new potato ideas for their menus.
Held August 23-26 in the Bozeman and Big Sky area, Spud Ranch is an evolution of Potatoes USA’s innovation sessions. The small, multi-day format was designed to strengthen relationships and gather operator insights away from a typical vendor setting.
“Spud Ranch gave us a unique opportunity to bring influential foodservice operators directly to potato fields, helping them understand the versatility, quality, and value of potatoes,” said Annelise McAuliffe Soares, Global Foodservice Development Manager at Potatoes USA. “By building stronger relationships and inspiring new menu ideas, we’re creating demand that ultimately benefits our industry.”
The trip’s highest-rated experience was Spud School, a sensory workshop and culinary demo led by Potatoes USA’s Culinary team. Each chain pre-submitted questions — such as which potatoes make the best fries and how dehydrated flakes are made — that shaped the session.
Operators enjoyed a guided tasting of steamed and roasted russet, yellow, fingerling, and red potatoes to experience the differences in cooking methods and types of spuds. They also explored how dehydrated potato products can solve operational problems and dug into data on loaded fries, followed by a tasting. Participants learned that loaded fries and dehydrated applications are both trending menu items, and both are achievable with ingredients they already have in their kitchens.
Portability was another key theme throughout the immersion. Potatoes were featured in on-the-go formats, such as a “walking chip” lunch (sandwich toppings added to a bag of potato chips for an easy-to-carry meal) and bento box meals enjoyed during outdoor activities and hikes, highlighting their versatility for snacking, delivery, and convenient eating occasions.
The immersion concluded at PremierAg, where grower and Potatoes USA Board Member Ben DeJonge welcomed the group to his family farm, sharing insights from more than a century of Montana farming while bringing seasonality, sourcing, and production to life for operators.
The immersion created momentum for future potato menu innovation. All attendees said they are now looking to try new potato applications on their menus. Potatoes USA will work directly with each attendee to develop new menu concepts for their operations.
Building on Spud Ranch’s momentum, Potatoes USA plans to conduct a similar operator immersion in 2027.