The recent approval of an updated trade agreement for North America is good news for U.S. potato growers who do business in Mexico, according to the top official with the potato industry's lobbying organization. 

No need to hold the ketchup.

EAGLE — Thanksgiving will now have to share the fourth Thursday of November with a new national holiday.

FORT HALL — This is a crop that will sell itself.

FORT HALL — The Idaho Potato Commission will host The Big Idaho Potato Harvest Meeting on Nov. 13 at the Shoshone-Bannock Hotel and Events Center, 777 Bannock Trail.

The leaves are displaying a cornucopia of color. There’s dust in the air. The hum of harvest is in the air too. Spuds are coming out of the ground by tractor and till in Idaho, but in Florida the same crop isn’t coming out, it’s going in.

BLACKFOOT – There was sadness and dismay in eastern Idaho’s potato community this weekend as the 2019 harvest wound down and growers began tallying up their losses from October’s disastrous freeze while pondering what to do with the tons of unusable tubers it left behind.

Zak and Rick Miller expect to lose a portion of their potato crop to frost damage, but their St. Anthony farm is positioned to survive thanks to a recent outpouring of community support.

Temperatures will be well below freezing this week, and there are still some potatoes left in the ground awaiting harvest. Probability of frost damage occurring on some of the remaining crop is high. Although weather is always hard to predict, it appears cooler temperatures will prevail over…

Roughly an inch of snow fell on James Hoff’s potato fields south of Idaho Falls on Wednesday as he and his crews raced to bring in the rest of the crop.

POCATELLO — East County Road just outside of Pocatello near the J.R. Simplot Don Plant had to be temporarily closed Tuesday morning after a heavy truck overturned, spilling potatoes onto the roadway.

What began as a humble potato equipment company more than 60 years ago by two brothers in East Idaho has developed into part of a multi-national company supplying potato equipment to growers around the world.

BLACKFOOT — Bingham County’s farmers have endured a growing season of uncertain weather, starting with a planting season beset by rain and cold spells that morphed into a summer that came with a hot spell accompanied by wind that lasted through grain harvest and into potatoes.

SHELLEY — Despite chilly weather to start the day, the 91st Idaho Spud Day still brought out a decent crowd Saturday and kept the long-running tradition of Shelley’s community celebration — one of the biggest in Bingham County — alive.

SHELLEY — One of the biggest annual celebrations in Bingham County, the 91st Idaho Spud Day, is coming up here this week.

Recent data supplied by Potatoes USA shows the value of potato exports was up in all categories for the marketing year that ended on July 1, though officials say gains would have been even stronger if not for retaliatory tariffs.

POCATELLO – Idaho’s total potato production in 2018 has been valued at $1.03 billion, a 5 percent increase over the 2017 total of $975 million and the second highest total ever.

KETCHUM — Weather conditions at harvest largely drove the prevalence of defects and the types of quality problems that retailers encountered with Idaho’s 2017 and 2018 fresh potato crops, new University of Idaho research suggests.

KETCHUM — Idaho potato industry leaders fear they may be adversely affected by Europe’s recent decision not to renew certification of a chemical used globally to inhibit tubers from sprouting in storage.

KETCHUM — The Idaho Potato Commission has teamed with a 14-year-old ventriloquist who wowed the judges on “America’s Got Talent” and a young child who reviews toys on YouTube, seeking to reach a younger generation of consumers.

McDonald’s Corp. spent nearly $136 million on Idaho agricultural commodities to supply its fast food restaurants during 2018, according to a recently released corporate report.

BLACKFOOT — There was a directive — more unofficial than anything — given on Facebook early Monday morning by Idaho Gov. Brad Little.

IDAHO FALLS — Leaders in Idaho’s potato industry see signs that the state will produce a smaller crop this fall than in 2018, when growers reported record yields, and the manageable crop size should contribute to a strong marketing year.