This year the southern United States has been stricken with a large amount of hurricanes. The worst of these devastating storms was Hurricane Irma which struck the Florida Coast. Irma left thousands without everyday essentials like nutritious food.
“Wisconsin farmers have a history of being generous, especially to those in need or suffering through an emergency hardship,” said WPVGA Executive Director Tamas Houlihan. “Through a coordinated effort by WPVGA members, we are proud to be a part of delivering ‘Something Special from Wisconsin’ to our friends in the southern U.S.”
This great act of kindness would not have been possible without the generous donations of product and time from those in the Wisconsin agriculture industry.
In total, there were over 30,000 pounds of potatoes donated by Wisconsin potato growers to be sent to Florida. The following Wisconsin potato farms made the generous donations of potatoes: Wysocki Produce Farm/RPE of Bancroft, Bushmans’ Inc. of Rosholt, Okray Family Farms of Plover, Alsum Farms of Friesland, and Worzella & Sons of Plover. In addition to the large quantity of potatoes, Dean Kincaid, Inc. of Palmyra donated 8,000 pounds of onions.
When it came to transportion of the vegetables, Bula-Gieringer Farms of Friendship contributed the generous donation of the freight, picking up product and delivering the load to Florida.
A number of organizations also made monetary donations including Roberts Irrigation of Plover, JW Mattek and Sons of Antigo, Bula Potato Farms of Antigo, Brenda and Dennis Bula of Antigo, Coloma Farms of Coloma and Heartland Farms of Hancock.
“We are saddened by the devastating impacts of the hurricane, and we feel the pain suffered by the agricultural community in the Immokalee/Naples region,” said Houlihan. “We are hopeful that this gesture from the Wisconsin potato and vegetable industry lets those folks know that we care about them and at least shines a ray of hope on their future.”
WPVGA is a non-profit organization that represents and promotes state potato and vegetable growers. They currently represent more than 400 members and affiliates. For more information on their commitment to sustainable agriculture, jobs, community engagement and water use, click www.eatwisconsinpotatoes.com.
