Jan 11, 2017Potato industry gathers at Potato Expo 2017
Potato Expo 2017, held Jan. 4-6 in the city of San Francisco, featured one of the highest number of attendees and exhibitors, and the second annual Spud Nation Throwdown Chef Cook-Off. More than 1,700 growers and industry reps attended the trade show, where exhibitors showcased cutting-edge technology and innovative solutions tailored for the potato industry.
The Potato Expo addressed many issues facing the industry. From new ag technology and the political climate to the weather outlook for 2017, attendees heard from industry experts. Forbes editor Rich Karlgaard shared his perspective on megatrends affecting business success. Adam Steltzner, an engineer at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, described the value of collaboration and teamwork based on his experience leading the group that landed the Mars rover Curiosity. Finally, Smoke’s Poutinerie CEO Ryan Smolkin described building and growing a successful brand of restaurants serving poutine. See what took place and view photos on Facebook, and listen to radio stories on Karlgaard’s megatrends and opportunities for agriculture.
The second Spud Nation Throwdown Chef Cook-Off, hosted by Phil Lempert, brought together a fusion of tastes, cultures and flavors as a diverse group of international chefs incorporated potatoes into dishes inspired by their distinctive culinary experiences. The cook-off held Jan. 4 between Tony de Graaf (Taiwan), Doris Goldgewicht (Costa Rica), Ian Kittichai (Thailand) and Wandy Robles (Dominican Republic) demonstrated the global passion for potatoes and showed each chef’s ability to blend traditional Asian or Latin foods with Western. The winner, Ian Kittichai, was honored for his recipe Massaman curry. Tony de Graaf received second prize for potato involtini.
Potato Expo 2018 will be held Jan. 10-12 at Rosen Shingle Creek Resort in Orlando, Florida. Detailed information about the 2018 conference will be posted on the website www.potato-expo.com in the autumn.
