03/27/06 Potato Coop headquarters in Salt Lake

Farm and Ranch March 27 , 2006 The United Potato Growers of America, the just one-year old grower owned and operated cooperative, has re-located its headquarters from Idaho Falls to Salt Lake City. The move puts UPGA near its legal counsel and the international airport. The Cooperatives CEO and President Julia Cissel has also appointed four senior level professionals to join her at the national office including a Chief Operating officer and Chief Financial Officer and Analyst. UPGA's mission is to reverse years of declining and unprofitable prices for potato growers. CEO Cissel emphasizes the need to hold plantings in check. Cissel: "The planters are starting to role. Intentions are being translated to potatoes in the ground. I would just encourage all growers to evaluate the situation and evaluate their planting intentions. As we mentioned out goal is to get ten percent plus reduction off of 04 plantings which is very similar to 05 or even a bit less than that. So I would just encourage everyone to look at the positive result from this year's market and make sure that we generate the number the potatoes so that we can have positive results on next year's market as well." The national cooperative has member coops in the Klamath Basin, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Wisconsin and Colorado. There is also an at large coop with members in Kansas and Nebraska and recently a sister organization, United Potato Growers of Canada was established. I'm Bob Hoff and that's the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report on the Northwest Ag Information Network.