Building the Foundation for the Export of U.S. Chipping Potatoes to South Korea, Taiwan, China, and Thailand Final rept

摘要

The Pacific Northwest (PNW) U.S. comprises one of the worlds largest potato growing regions. The majority of chip potato growers in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho have small-scale farms in rural communities. Over the last several years, these growers have faced numerous challenges that have jeopardized their commercial survival. For this reason, they are aggressively pursuing alternative markets and direct sales channels. The snack food industries in South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and China provide PNW growers an excellent opportunity for market expansion as they are major consumers of potato-based snack foods. While these countries have domestic potato production, the ability of local producers to meet domestic demand is limited. First, their supplies are often insufficient to meet the processors demands. Second, these markets do not grow varieties specific to chip manufacturing as is done in the U.S. Finally, domestic potato prices and product inefficiencies often make importing U.S. product more competitive. Each of the markets identified holds similar challenges and characteristics, yet each also holds unique opportunities.