Fighting Against Tax Hikes on Family Farms

08/07/21 • 29 min

Eye on Potatoes: A Podcast on All Things Potatoes

National Potato Council Vice President of Legislative Affairs JR Andrus from Idaho joins CEO Kam Quarles for a discussion on proposals being floated in Congress to fund infrastructure improvements on the backs of family farmers. JR says that some infrastructure investments are important, however they should not be paid for by undermining U.S. family farms that are still struggling to recover from the pandemic.

Previous Episode

The State of the Industry Mid-Year Report

NPC 2021 President and Maine potato grower Dominic Lajoie and NPC CEO Kam Quarles sat down with us to preview next week's Summer Meeting Virtual and update the industry on a number of policy development that have occurred since the Annual Meeting in February, including:

NPC’s efforts over the pandemic to secure $350 million for growers to offset foodservice disruptions;
Ongoing negotiations between the U.S. and Mexico to reinstate access to U.S. fresh potatoes; and,
The latest efforts on Capitol Hill to address comprehensive immigration reform, including ag labor reform.

For information about or to register for NPC's Summer Meeting, July 26-28, visit nationalpotatocouncil.org/summer-meeting.

Next Episode

A Conversation with 2021-22 Academic Scholarship Recipient Thilani Jayakody

Thilani Jayakody, a third-year graduate student in the Michigan State University’s Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences, was recently announced as the recipient of the Potato LEAF's 2021-22 Academic Scholarship. Thilani joins podcast host Lane Nordlund and NPC's Mike Wenkel for a conversation about her background, academic research, and the importance of the Potato LEAF scholarship in helping her reach her career goals.
The Potato Leadership, Education and Advancement Foundation (Potato LEAF) provides a $10,000 scholarship award annually to one graduate student with a strong interest in research that can directly benefit the U.S. potato industry. As a Ph.D. candidate and graduate research assistant, Thilani was recognized for her research in potato genome editing focused on the application of new breeding techniques for crop improvement.
For more information on Thilani's work and the Potato LEAF Academic Scholarship, visit pleaf.org.