Where Potatoes For French Fries Come From

Ever wondered where potatoes for french fries come from? Seed potatoes are grown and atmospherically controlled greenhouses to prevent airborne pathogens and insect infestation. This protection is necessary, because it can take a three to four generations to produce potatoes that are sold in the marketplace.

In the spring, the seed potatoes are cut into seed pieces and planted in the fields. Then harvested in the fall. Certified seed potatoes are produced in April and are planted in late April through the end of May.

It takes two to three weeks for the seed potatoes to germinate and start growing. Adding just the right amount of water to the potatoes seedling is important to prevent rot. Potato seedlings prefer warm days and cool nights and rich organic soils.

The growing season for most potatoes in the United States is June through September. Harvesting potatoes begins in September and lasts through mid October. Potatoes are harvested in the field by huge potato diggers. The potatoes are then transferred to a processing facility, where they are washed and sorted by size.

Once the potatoes are cleaned and sorted, they are then placed in gigantic storage facilities, which can hold up to 80,000 hundredweight. The storage facilities have computer controlled climates. Potatoes require a delicate blend of temperature and humidity to insure a long shelf life.

Potatoes, when properly stored, can be kept in these facilities for more than six months. Many of the potatoes that we consume in the spring and summer are actually from crops that were grown in the previous year. The potatoes are then placed on semi trucks and taken to a packaging facility, where once again, they will be cleaned and sorted by weight.

USA potatoes are inspected by the United States Department of agriculture. The potatoes are then bagged and palletized and loaded onto trucks for transportation to your local grocery store.