July/August 2021 - 6

TAKING STOCK
EDITOR'S LETTER
Marketing
and outreach
To date, I've recorded 19 episodes of " The Potato Field " podcast.
It's been a great experience to get to better know some people I
knew previously, as well as getting to know some people I had not
met prior to taping.
I
certainly knew of Strohauer Farms in
Zeke Jennings
Editor
Colorado, although I had not actually met or
spoken to Harry Strohauer prior to when we,
along with his daughter, Amber, got on a Zoom
session back in March to tape what would
become Episode 12 of " The Potato Field. " Part
of what piqued my interest in having them
on as guests was the outreach and marketing
efforts of the operation, which is largely led by Amber these days.
Strohauer Farms is a diverse operation. Part of their production
includes organic and specialty potatoes that they sell directly
to retailers in Colorado's major cities, like Denver and Boulder,
which have progressive food scenes. Marketing is a priority for an
operation like Strohauer in a way that it probably wouldn't be for a
grower that sells exclusively to processors, for example. Harry has
always made himself available to those interested in how a farm is
run, whether it be to reporters at news outlets or getting involved
in agriculture organizations. Amber continues with those aspects,
but also has embraced new methods to make connections, like
working with area chefs and foodservice operators in a Potatoes
USA style of way.
Making such connections is of course good for Strohauer Farms
sales, but it's also a chance to share the farming story with people who
are not connected with agriculture. As we all know, the percentage
of the population that calls farming a profession continues to
shrink, leaving a larger number of people disconnected with ag and
unaware of what it takes to grow food in the mass quantities needed
to feed the world.
With all the noise and means of communicating in today's
technologically advanced world, ag can't wait for people to come
and ask how they farm and about their struggles, they have to take
their message to the masses aggressively.
Strohauer Farms does a good job of that. I hope you enjoy this
issue's cover story on their operation on Page 8.
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Editorial Board
Randy Hardy, Oakley Farms, Oakley, Idaho
Andy Jensen, Northwest Potato Research Consortium
Don Sklarczyk, Sklarczyk Seed Farms, Johannesburg, Mich.
Robert Thornton, Washington State University, Pullman, Wash.
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6
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July/August 2021

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