Potato board appoints new leader

PRESQUE ISLE – Donald Flannery of Fort Fairfield has been named executive director of the Maine Potato Board.

The announcement was made Friday night at the potato board’s annual meeting held at the Presque Isle Inn and Convention Center.

“Don brings years of experience to the position and is familiar with the day-to-day operations of Maine’s potato industry,” said Thomas Qualey of Benedicta, president of the potato board, in a press release. “We look forward to working closely with him to advance the interests of the industry.”

Flannery, who has served as assistant executive director since 1997, succeeds Michael Corey, who resigned from the executive director’s post last October. Flannery has been serving as interim executive director since that time.

Reached at his home Sunday, Flannery said one of his goals as director will be to take a closer look at the services offered by the potato board.

“We need to be more proactive in getting good information back to growers,” he said during a telephone interview.

At the same time, Flannery said it will be more important than ever for farmers to take a more active role in their industry.

The on-going debate over the annual potato-harvest recess for students in Aroostook County is a key example. Each year more school systems consider eliminating or reducing the three-week break in the fall.

“We’ve got a generation in Aroostook County that is one generation away from agriculture,” said Corey. “We have to stress how important agriculture is to the economy and our way of life.”

Another issue that needs to be addressed is the loss of markets for fresh potatoes. Corey noted that other agricultural products such as bananas, tomatoes and grapes have taken produce-section space in supermarkets away from potatoes. At the same time, home consumption of potatoes has declined 20 percent.

“People want fast and easy,” Flannery said. “We have to work closely with the National Potato Promotion Board to build back demand in markets.

“We’re not going to be able to do it alone,” he said, adding that Maine will need to form cooperative relationships with other potato-producing states such as New York or Ohio and establish research partnerships that can help the region gain a larger share of federal funds.

He said Aroostook County companies such as Fresh From the Start in Caribou and Naturally Potatoes in Mars Hill that produce fresh potato products to meet home and institutional needs also must be protected.

“We need to make sure we work to help those companies to assure they get more of the market and keep their current market share,” he said.

Corey said he would maintain an open-door policy at the potato board so that growers with concerns or ideas can feel free to come in and talk.