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Open House Field Day 2018

September 6, 2018 By Gold Dust Farms

Gold Dust & Walker Farms' guests at the Reames' Country Club for the 2018 Open House Field Day.
Thanks to everyone who could make it our 18th Annual Open House Field Day!

Another August was almost over. Grain and hay were being cut, and chipping potatoes were already being dug and shipped. Earlier in the month we had a Leadership Meeting and Employee Appreciation Picnic, making this August a touch busier than normal. And as always this time of year, we opened our doors and headed to the fields for Gold Dust & Walker Farms’ 18th Annual Open House Field Day!

This year, the festivities began the night before at Bill and Jan’s house, where Gold Dust and Walker Farms staff mingled with our visitors. Though the past few months in the Klamath Basin were incredibly smokey, the air cleared and everyone was able to enjoy a gorgeous evening outside with cold drinks, great food and good company. A feast of roast, fresh tuna, shrimp and scallops was put together by Jan, Ken Hibbard and Casey Lammers, followed by German chocolate cake and ice cream. Visiting carried on past sunset, and with a touch of smoke still in the air, gave our guests an amazing Klamath Basin sunset. Frankly, we couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful evening.

Jan Walker, Ken Hibberd and Casey Lammers prepping dinner near Malin, Oregon.
Cheers to our chefs – Jan, Ken and Casey!
Bob Gasser, Drew Huffman and Kyle Patterson visiting at Bill and Jan Walker's Malin, OR home.
Bob Gasser is having a pretty serious conversation with Drew Huffman and Kyle Patterson.
Weston Walker and Rob Unruh visiting with Jaap Langenberg at Bill and Jan Walker's house outside Malin, OR.
Weston and Rob Unruh visiting with Jaap Langenberg of Luke’s Organics.
Bill Walker Mike Henard, Jim Boone and Erin Plumb visiting at Bill and Jan Walker's home.
Looks like Bill is telling a pretty good story!
Sanjay Prasad and Gurvinder Johal from Frito Lay visiting with Matt Thompson at Bill and Jan Walker's Malin, Oregon house.
Sanjay, Gurvinder and Matt enjoying a couple of cold ones.
Gold Dust & Walker Farms' guests visiting at Bill and Jan Walker's Malin, Oregon home.
Everyone enjoying the good company and roast beef, tuna and shrimp.

The next morning, everyone met at Mike & Wanda’s restaurant in Tulelake. After a welcoming speech from Bill, Lexi introduced Klamath County Museums Manager, Todd Kepple. At our Open House Field Day breakfast, we usually have a speaker, and this year Mr. Kepple put together a presentation about the history of Klamath Basin agriculture. From the Reclamation Project to drawing homesteads from pickle jars to the Bucket Brigade of 2001, Todd’s presentation gave us and our guests incredible insights to how farming and ranching not only changed over the years, but how it changed the Klamath Basin itself.

Bill Walker and Lexi Crawford welcoming Gold Dust & Walker Farms' guests at Mike and Wanda's Restaurant in Tulelake, CA.
Bill and Lexi warmly welcoming our guests at breakfast.
Klamath County Museum Manager, Todd Kepple, giving a presentation about Klamath Basin agriculture during Gold Dust & Walker Farms' 18th Annual Open House Field Day breakfast.
Todd Kepple, Manager of the Klamath County Museum, gave our group a great historical perspective of Klamath Basin ag.
Gold Dust & Walker Farms' guests boarding a bus used for the 2018 Open House Field Day.
All aboard!

Following breakfast, it was time to head to the potato fields! Like last year, our growers showed off their fields and dug up a few spuds to show our group. If you’ve read past posts about our Open House Field Day, you’ve seen pictures of long trains of cars and pickups parked along the fields. This year, we decided it would be more efficient and effective to rent a bus instead of everyone driving to the fields on their own. With everyone on the bus, on the way to the fields our growers were able to provide their family’s history of farming in the Klamath Basin as well as answer questions about potato varieties, the ins-and-outs of potato farming and anything else that came to mind. Not only was this a more efficient way for us to get everyone on the field tour, it provided a great way for our guests to chat while learning more about us and our growers.

Which growers’ fields did we visit?

We started with Luke Robison’s field of 2137 potatoes located just outside of Tulelake. After that, we headed to the leases where Matt Huffman had some 1867 chipping potatoes dug and ready for inspection. Next, we headed back to Tulelake where we visited Sid Staunton’s field of Waneta potatoes. Though we weren’t able to swing by his field located near Lower Klamath Lake, Kyle Patterson shared a bit about his experiences with growing Dakota Pearls, which was fitting because it was on the way to a sandy field of Dakota Pearl chippers grown by Rob Unruh, just a bit north of Gold Dust’s campus. On the way back the shed, Tricia shared a bit about her and Weston’s Basin farming lineage and what brought her back home to farm.

Sid Staunton, John Walker and Luke Robison discussing chipping potatoes in a potato field outside of Tulelake, CA.
In Luke Robison’s field, John enjoyed a fresh potato
Matt Huffman, John Walker and Danny Lopez talking about chipping potatoes in a field on the Tule Lake Leaselands.
Matt Huffman, John and Lays Modesto plant manager Danny Lopez talking quality in Huffman Farms’ field in the Leases.
John Walker, Ed Staunton, Sid Staunton and Bill Walker in Staunton Farms' chipping potato field outside of Tulelake, CA.
Ed and Sid Staunton shared their grandfather’s desire to make Tulelake look a little more like West Virginia during their field visit.
Rob Unruh digging up Dakota Pearl potatoes in a potato field north of Gold Dust Potatoes' Malin, OR campus.
Those are some pretty good looking potatoes, Rob!

By the time we made it back to the packing shed, the plant had ended shipping for the day and Matt had samples of the chipping potato varieties Gold Dust and Walker Farms can provide laid out on the production floor. To make this visit even more interesting, Frito Lay reps Sanjay Prasad, Gurvinder Johal and Danny Lopez brought along some fresh potato chips from the Lays plant in Modesto. And yes – these were made with our potatoes we dug this week!

Lays potato chips next to a sample of 1867 chipping potatoes in Gold Dust Potatoes' packing shed for the 2018 Open House Field Day.
It’s pretty cool to see fresh potato chips next to a sample of chipping potatoes of the same variety.
Danny Lopez, Bill Walker and Todd Kepple in Gold Dust Potato Processors' packing shed in Malin, Oregon.
Danny Lopez talking chip quality with Bill and Todd Kepple.
Matt Thompson, David Thackery and Mark Thomas talking at Gold Dust Potatoes' 2018 Open House Field Day.
When you get three processing plant guys together, what do you think they’re talking about?
Tricia Hill and Kyle Patterson with an unknown guest at Gold Dust's processing plant during the 2018 Open House Field Day.
Tricia and new grower, Kyle Patterson, checking out the chipping potato samples.

Following the shed tour, our guests made their way to Reames Country Club for a fun golf scramble. Once the ceremonial shots of Crown had been taken, the teams made their way to the golf course for a shotgun start. Around 6:30 pm, the teams began to make their way from the golf course to the club house to enjoy cocktails and a dinner put together by the Reames staff.

Katie Walker and Billy Conrad of Pape' Machinery with a plaque honoring Pape' Machinery for their support of Make-A-Wish Oregon at Gold Dust's 2018 Open House Field Day dinner.
On behalf of Make-A-wish Oregon, Katie gave Billy Conrad of Pape’ Machinery an award for their continued gifting.

The Open House Field Day has presented itself as an opportunity to raise money for our local Make-A-Wish chapter, and this year was no different. Katie Walker, Weston’s wife, took this as an opportunity to recognize some of our guests who have given year after year with a plaque to recognize their company’s generosity. After handing out recognition, it was time to start raising pledges.

Last year, between the generosity of our guests and Gold Dust and Walker Farms’ matching their pledges, we were able to raise $30,490 along with 135,000 airline miles. This year’s goal was to raise $35,000.  After a heartfelt thank you from Make-A-Wish Oregon’s Corporate Alliances Manager, Mallory Tyler, and short video about a Wish recipient, our guests gave generously. When it was all said and done, after Gold Dust matched everyone’s pledges, our crowd raised $45,000 for Make-A-Wish! When we say we work with good people, we don’t just mean they’re good at they do. Their pledges for Make-A-Wish is proof of that.

At the 18th Annual Open House Field Day dinner, Gold Dust and Walker Farms' guests watched a movie about a Make-A-Wish wish recipient.
Before our Make-A-Wish fundraiser, there was a short movie about a wish coming true.
Gold Dust and Walker Farms 18th Annual Open House Field Day guests raising money for Make-A-Wish Oregon.
Lexi and Katie led a great round of fundraising for Make-A-Wish Oregon. Well done to our guests!
Make-A-Wish Oregon’s Corporate Alliances Manager, Mallory Tyler, thanking guests for generosity at Gold Dust & Walker Farms' 18th Annual Open House Field Day.
Mallory Tyler, Make-A-Wish Oregon’s Corporate Alliances Manager, thanking our guests for their generosity.

We also went over which teams won the golf scramble and who took home top honors for their skills with the clubs. This year, we had a tie for first and second place – both teams shot a 64. After going over the cards and comparing the performance of the front nine, the back nine and doing some other fancy golf math, the team of Matt Thompson, Sanjay Prasad, Erin Plumb and Ty Hulse came out on top, which left second place honors for Rob Unruh, Steve Parkinson and Drew Huffman. Destiny Huffman had an amazing day as she took home not only the Ladies Longest Drive, but also the Closest to the Pin! Jared Marshall crushed the ball to take home Men’s Long Drive while Jeff Dahl drove his ball Closest to the Pin to take home the other golf club.

Lexi Crawford with Gold Dust Open House Field Day Longest Drive winner, Jared Marshall.
The Man With The Big Club – Jared Marshall
Lexi Crawford with Gold Dust's 18th Annual Open House Field Day Men's KP winner Jeff Dahl.
Jared Dahl showed all the men what accuracy is about with a KP on his last hole.
Lexi Crawford with Destiney Huffman, who took home Women's KP and Long Drive honors at Gold Dust & Walker Farms' 18th Annual Open House Field Day golf scramble.
The gal with all the gifts – Destiney Huffman!
1st place team for the Gold Dust & Walker Farms' 18th Annual Open House Field Day golf scramble Erin Plumb, Ty Hulse, Sanjay Prasad and Matt Thompson.
Here’s your 1st Place Winners – Erin, Ty, Sanjay and Matt!
2nd place team for Gold Dust and Walker Farms' Open House Field Day golf scramble Drew Huffman, Rob Unruh and Steve Parkinson.
After a heartbreaking first place tie, here’s our second place winners – Drew, Rob and Steve.

Before the night was over, the senior partners passed the mic to thank everyone for coming. Tricia took this opportunity to highlight five folks who have been attending our Open House Field Day since the beginning – Ron Marshall, Jim Boone, Paul Sproule, and Chris Moudry. Weston thanked the crowd for their generosity and Bill thanked everyone who attended for their continued support and attendance to our Open House Field Day. John wrapped it up with a rousing thank you and pep talk that pointed out that what has made our businesses successful isn’t just us – it was everyone in the audience who got up every morning and did what they do best. His mic drop drew loud applause and was a fitting end to the evening.

Bill Walker thanking guests at Gold Dust and Walker Farms' 18th Annual Open House Field Day.
Bill thanking everyone for making our 18th Annual Open House Field Day another success.
Weston Walker thanking guests at Gold Dust & Walker Farms' 2018 Open House Field Day.
Weston thanking our guests for their continued support of Make-A-Wish Oregon.
John Walker thanking guests at Gold Dust's 18th Annual Open House Field Day.
John bringing the house down with a raucous thank you!

We always enjoy this opportunity to get together with the growers, suppliers, financiers and customers who have helped us become successful, and this year was no different. Gold Dust and Walker Farms are successful in no small part due to the people we work with. When we say we work with the best – and most giving – we mean it. We hope everyone had a safe trip home and that we’ll see everyone once again next year. Last, but not least – thank you. Thank you for helping us become the amazing businesses we have grown into and thank you for your continued support.

Filed Under: customers and clients, Gold Dust Potato Processors, open house field day, potato chips, potato customers, potato shed, walker brothers

Where Do Kettle Brand Chips Come From? Ask Tater Tracker!

December 4, 2017 By Gold Dust Farms Leave a Comment

Bags of Kettle Brand potato chips on a kitchen counter.
Ever wonder where the potatoes for your Kettle Brand Chips come from?

As a chipping potato grower, we get to work with a lot of recognizable brand names from around world – and it’s pretty cool. People love to know where their food comes from, and as we attempted to answer the question “where do potato chips come from?” in another post, we’ve been given an opportunity to answer it again!

Ever been snacking on Kettle Chips and ever wonder where they came from? Well, they’ve provided an online tool to give you the answer! Kettle Brand has released their Tater Tracker, which highlights their potato growers and the farms where the potatoes come from. As you might recall from our Open House Field Day post – we’re one of those growers. And, yes, Gold Dust and Walker Farms is featured on Kettle Brands’ Tater Tracker page as well as a profile on Weston!

The Kettle Brand potato chips company car at Gold Dust and Walker Farms' Malin, Or campus during the 2017 Open House Field Day.
The Kettle Brand Potato Chips company rig stood out at the Open House Field Day

So, how does the Tater Tracker work? First, you obviously have to get a bag of delicious Kettle Brand potato chips (we recommend buying at least a dozen!). Next, locate the “Best Before” date located on the top right corner on one of the many bags you’ve purchased. Just below it you’ll find two numerical codes – type the second one into the space on the Tater Tracker page and you’ll see which Northwest potato farm your chips came from!

Consumer purchasing Kettle Brand potato chips at a store.
Step 1: Locate and procure bag of Kettle Brand Potato Chips
An image of Kettle Brand potato chips' Tater Tracker grower code.
Step 2: Locate the Tater Tracker code just below the “Best Before” date. Yes, the last four digits too.
A photo of a Samsung Chromebook and Kettle Brand's Tater Tracker page opened with a chipping potato grower code entered in it.
Step 3: Enter the entire code into the Kettle’s Tater Tracker. As you see, the last four digits are entered at the end.

If you look at our grower profile, just under Weston’s bio you’ll see something else that Kettle has done with these pages – a virtual farm tour! While best viewed on an Android device, as the video plays you can turn your phone to get a 360 degree view of our potato farm, the sheds and even chipping potatoes being harvested. It’s a great way to see where your potato chips are coming from and give visitors an idea of what makes each of these potato farms unique.

Video by MaxwellPR.com

We love that Kettle Brand is as proud to work with us as we are with them. Not only does their dedication to sustainable agriculture match ours, it’s great to work with a snack company located in the Pacific Northwest that features local farms on its site. Thank you, Kettle Brand!

 

Filed Under: chipping potatoes, customers and clients, farm, Gold Dust Potato Processors, Organic Potatoes, potato chips, potato customers, potato harvest, potato shed, sustainable farming, walker brothers

Making A Wish Come True

August 21, 2017 By Gold Dust Farms Leave a Comment

Krue Johnston, a Make-A-Wish recipient from Klamath Falls standing in front of a limousine before heading to Medford Regional Airport to have his wish granted.
Krue Johnston getting ready to leave for his wish – the kid’s riding in style to MFR!

If you’ve followed our blog at all, you’re aware that for the last several years at our Open House Field Day that we have held a fundraiser for our local chapter of Make A Wish. We sincerely appreciate the charity and giving spirit of our guests. However, rarely do they get to see how their generosity impacts any of the children they’re helping.

Recently, Jan Walker, Gold Dust CEO Bill’s wife, was helping grant the wish of a local boy when things went slightly sideways on them at the Medford Airport. But it does have a happy ending. What’s great about this story is the franchise of one of our customers (not knowing Jan’s affiliation with Gold Dust or In-N-Out’s generosity at our annual event!) was more than giving in helping make his wish come true. Now, in Jan’s words, here’s how In-N-Out’s Medford, Oregon store manager helped her and a friend make a boy’s wish even sweeter:

Gold Dust has held Make A Wish fundraisers at our Annual Open House each August. Our participants have helped raise money for the many wishes that the Oregon Make A Wish Organization have provided to children facing life threatening health conditions. Katie Walker (Weston’s wife) and I have been active wish grantors and are often asked at our annual fundraiser about some of the wishes that the fundraiser has helped. Some of those are local children that are granted wishes. This is a story of one recent wish that was granted to a local boy, Krue Johnston.

Make-A-Wish wish grantors Kay Ratliff and Jan Walker standing with Krue Johnston at Medford Regional Airport.
Krue with wish grantors Kay Ratliff and Jan Walker

Krue was diagnosed with Duchene Muscular Dystrophy in 2015. A friend of mine, Kay Ratliff, who is also a wish grantor, and I took on Krue’s wish. After meeting Krue it was discovered his wish was to go to a sandy beach, snorkel, fish and swim with dolphins in the Bahamas. The magic of granting wishes to a wish child becomes real when wish grantors are able to announce to the child that his wish has come true. Krue’s wish to go to the Bahamas happened last May. He and his family flew to Nassau from Medford. One of the duties of wish grantors is to be at the airport to help the family on to their flight and intercept any problems. We were happy to be part of the excitement of beginning Krue’s wish.

While waiting for their plane, they planned to eat dinner. Unfortunately the airport restaurant was closed. Krue said he would love to have an In-N-Out Burger and Fries. This is where we come in to grant one more WISH!

As you may be aware, we supply In-N-Out with potatoes for their delicious french fries, and luckily for us there was a newly opened In-N-Out store in Medford. I took the families’ orders and drove over to the In-N- Out for their dinner. While there, the wonderful store manager helped prepare Krue’s special wish. She asked what size t-shirt Krue would wear and gave a coveted In-N-Out t-shirt to deliver to Krue. She provided Krue’s meal, an In-N-Out hat, stickers and games. Sadly we did not get the Medford store manager’s name, but we sincerely thank her and In-N-Out for the kindness to Krue.

Make-A-Wish wisher Krue Johnston at the Medford Airport with lunch provided by In-N-Out's manager.
Not saying airport food is bad, but In-N-Out does sound a bit better!
Krue Johnston enjoying an In-N-Out hamburger at the Medford Regional Airport.
Krue, is that a good burger?
Make-A-Wish wish grantor Jan Walker with Krue Johnston showing off In-N-Out t-shirt and hat donated along with dinner by Medford, Oregon's In-N-Out store manager.
Thank you, In-N-Out Medford!

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who have participated and so generously contributed to our cause for Make A Wish. You have made a dramatic difference is many children’s lives who become Wish children. Krue had a wonderful trip and was able to swim with his dolphins, he got to snorkel and be in the white sand that he was so looking forward to. Thank you and hope to see you all again at Gold Dust’s Open House this August.

Krue Johnston snorkeling in the Bahamas as part of his wish granted by Make-A-Wish.
Krue enjoying the blue waters of the Bahamas
Krue Johnston with a manta ray in the Bahamas as part of his Make-A-Wish wish.
Krue got to swim with dolphins and manta rays as part of his wish!
Krue Johnston and his mother, Tracy, swimming in the waters in the Bahamas.
Krue and his mom, Tracy, enjoying floating in the warm, beautiful waters of the Bahamas.

As Jan said, we hope to see all our guests at this year’s Open House and Field Day, and thank you to all for supporting Make A Wish. This story shows the caliber of people we do business with and the quality of folks they hire. Thank you again for helping make wishes come true!

One final thank you before wrapping this up – thank you to Krue’s mom, Tracy, for sharing his story and pictures from his wish. It’s a joy to see what Make-A-Wish is about!

Filed Under: chipping potatoes, cooking with jan, customers and clients, Gold Dust Potato Processors, open house field day, walker brothers

It’s “Do Us A Flavor” Time Again!

August 6, 2015 By Gold Dust Farms Leave a Comment

Gold Dust tested Lays' 2015 Do Us A Flavor suggestions.
Which would you pick – West Coast Truffle Fries, Southern Biscuits & Gravy, Greektown Gyro or New York Reuben?

If you haven’t been to a store, been watching TV or messing around online, then you probably haven’t noticed that Lays’ “Do Us A Flavor” contest is back for 2015.  And honestly, we couldn’t be happier!

What appears to now be an annual tradition, “Do Us A Flavor” asks people from all over to submit flavors they think would make a tasty tater chip.  In years past, we’ve seen Asian influenced flavors such as Sriracha and Wasabi Ginger as well as flavors more familiar to the American palate like Cheesy Garlic Bread and Chicken and Waffles.  This year, Lays picked four flavors to battle it out  – West Coast Truffle Fries, Greektown Gyro, Southern Biscuits and Gravy, and New York Reuben.

Since it’s a contest put on by one of our customers, it only makes sense that we have some of the office staff and people around the shed try them out and decide which was Gold Dust’s favorite flavor.  How did the flavors fair?

A photo of a bag of Lays Southern Biscuits & Gravy Potato Chips
Gold Dust’s Pick – Southern Biscuits & Gravy!

In Gold Dust’s voting, Southern Biscuits & Gravy was the winner!  Following Southern Biscuits & Gravy was West Coast Truffle Fries, with Greektown Gyro coming in third and New York Reuben coming in fourth.

What made Southern Biscuits & Gravy so popular?  One comment was they did a great job of catching the essence of sausage gravy with just enough black pepper to make it savory and great for any time of day – from watching an early morning college football game on Saturday morning or wrapping up the evening much later that night after a few beers with friends.  West Coast Truffle Fries had a took a thick-cut chip with ridges so it could stand up to a delicious mix of garlic and cheese (some wished the earthy black truffle flavors would have been more forward).  As for the Greektown Gyro, Lays managed to somehow coax the flavor of lamb into the kettle-style chips with nice herbal notes standing out from the crowd of flavors.  As for the New York Reuben, our tasters could pick up on hints of rye bread and sauerkraut without overpowering the flavor of pastrami they managed to add without actually adding the salty deli meat.

All in all, the flavors were all good, and definitely were faithfully and deliciously recreated.  If you haven’t tried any of them yet, we suggest you get your best friends and family together and have a tasting party.  Surely if they have wine tastings, we can do potato chip tastings, right?

Feel free to let us know which flavor was your fave in our comments!

Filed Under: customers and clients, Gold Dust Potato Processors, potato chips

Thanks For Helping Make-A-Wish Oregon

November 20, 2013 By Gold Dust Farms Leave a Comment

Mike Delisle of Mayo Mfg and Joe Dahlen of Crairie Industries give donations to Necia Phillips for Make-A-Wish Oregon at Gold Dust's annual Open House Field Day dinner.
Mike Delisle and Joe Dahlen open their check books for Make-A-Wish. Thanks, Mike and Joe!

Last month, in the midst of grain and potato harvest, Gold Dust made good on a fundraiser it held during the annual Open House Field Day.  As you may recall, Gold Dust took the opportunity of its annual event to not only focus on their fields and operations, but to also raise money for an organization that’s doing good for the community.  With Bill’s wife, Jan, Weston’s wife, Katie, and employee Necia Phillips helping make wishes come true for children with life-threatening illnesses, they chose Make-A-Wish Oregon as the organization they wanted to help.

And our guests stepped up and helped.  Throughout the Open House Field Day, guests generously pledged and donated a total of $1,900.  With all pledges received, Bill, John, Tricia and Weston decided to match what was raised and kicked in another $1,900, bringing the total to $3,800.  Considering the average wish costs $7,500 to grant, the generosity of the folks we do business with is going to go a long ways in making a wish come true.

We’re happy that our Open House Field Day was able to help out a worthy cause, and Bill, John, Weston and Tricia would like to thank everyone who came and decided to give.  It’s always great to see people travel all the way to the Klamath Basin to see what we do, but it’s even more wonderful to see the level of generosity and kindness of the people who help make our business great.

Before we wrap up this post, we’d like to encourage you to visit Make-A-Wish Oregon.  There, you can see ways to contribute, whether you decide to open your wallet, volunteer to grant wishes or find other ways to help.  And if you want to share out story, be sure to check out our press release.

 

Filed Under: community, customers and clients, Gold Dust Potato Processors, open house field day

2013 Open House Field Day

September 16, 2013 By Gold Dust Farms Leave a Comment

Gold Dust and Walker Brothers' guests for their 2013 Open House Field Day golf scramble.
Now THIS is a gathering of smart and good-looking folks!

If you haven’t noticed, it’s our busy time of year again.  Harvest started in August, and we’re already shipping potatoes.  Even with all the action, last month, August 20th to be exact, we took a day to show off our fields and facilities for our 13th Annual Open House Field Day!

This year we had another successful Open House Field Day.  The day began at Mike and Wanda’s restaurant in Tulelake, CA, with a breakfast meeting.  While our guests enjoyed a hearty breakfast, Lexi Crawford gave a presentation about this year’s projects and where we’re headed.  After Lexi finished, Greg Addington, chief executive of the Klamath Water Users Association (KWUA), talked to the group about the water situation in the Klamath Basin.

We couldn’t call it a field day without actually visiting a field, so we headed out to two fields cared for by two of our growing partners – Huffman Brothers Farm and Staunton Family Farms.  Both fields were an excellent representation of the quality chipping potatoes we ship to our customers, and the experience of the Huffman and Staunton families is greatly appreciated by Gold Dust.  Once the field tours were finished, the group headed to our Malin processing plant.  This year, instead of just talking about potatoes and showing off our packing shed, we had a drone demonstration put on by John Faus and Ben Howard of HoneyComb Corporation, and a talk about protecting potatoes after harvest led by Lucie Grant of Jet Harvest Solutions.  We’ve never had presentations from outside companies that we’re working with, making this a first for our Open House Field Day.

For the UAV demonstration, the HoneyComb team launched a drone and programmed it fly over the chipping potato field just south of our solar panels.  As the UAV flew its flight path, our guests could watch the real-time flight on a large monitor and then check out NDVI photos afterwards.  Once the drone had landed and questions had been answered, everyone headed inside to hear how using organic, biological fungicides and pesticides could help potatoes last longer in storage.  After Lucie finished, the crowd gathered around the samples collected from the fields and enjoyed Subway sandwiches before heading to the Running Y.

Gold Dust Potatoes' guests gather for a UAV presentation by HoneyComb Corp.
Everyone ready for the air show?
Ben Howard of HoneyComb Corp launches a small drone over a field at Gold Dust's Malin, OR headquarters.
And we have take-off!
Matt Huffman and Howard Klassen of Huffman Brothers Farm watch a UAV flying over Gold Dust Potato Processors in Malin, OR.
Matt and Howard of Huffman Bros keep a close eye on the drone
HoneyComb Corporation's test drone comes in for a landing at Gold Dust's Malin, Oregon campus.
The UAV comes in for a landing
Ben Howard explains how the imagery captured and processed by HoneyComb can be used to Paul Sproule.
Ben Howard and Paul Sproule discuss the imagery collected by the drone
Vern and Chance Frederickson at Gold Dust's 2013 Open House Field Day.
Vern Frederickson and his son, Chance, at Gold Dust’s packing shed
Paul Sproule with his daughter, Annie, at Gold Dust's Malin, Oregon packing shed at the 2013 Open House Field Day.
Annie and Paule Sproule taking in the drone show
Lucie Grant of Jet Harvest Solutions discusses her company's line of organic, biological pesticides and fungicides at Gold Dust's 2013 Open House Field Day.
The crowd taking in Lucie Grant’s discussion of Jet Harvest’s organic bio-pesticides
Weston Walker and Duane "Sarge" Preston talking at Gold Dust Potatoes' processing plant in Malin, OR, at the 2013 Open House Field Day.
Looks like Sarge is giving Weston some sage advice!
Emmanual Rios and Sanjay Prasad look over chipping potato samples at Gold Dust's potato packing shed near Malin, Oregon.
I sure hope the Frito Lays guys are impressed!
Lexi Crawford and Nancy Kim at Gold Dust Potato Processors' 2013 Open House Field Day.
Smile, ladies!
Bill Walker discussing Gold Dust's chipping potatoes with Mike Henard, Tricia (Walker) Hill, Matt Huffman and Joe Dahlen at the 2013 Open House Field Day.
Bill talking chipping potatoes with Tricia and guests

Why did we head for the Running Y?  For the traditional golf scamble of course!  After a group photo and instructions were given, the teams headed to various holes on the course to see which would  bring home top (and bottom honors).  Following the scramble, our guests headed back into the club house for a tri-tip and chicken dinner and to learn which team was top, which team was bottom, and who took home the longest drive and closest to the pin.  So who did what?

1st Place: Paul Sproule, Eddie Staunton and Greg Addington

2nd Place: Matt Thompson, Patrick Hagen and Sanjay Prasad

Last Place:  Tricia (Walker) Hill, Annie Sproule, Maria Contreras and Katie Walker

Longest Drive (Women):  Nancy Reece

Longest Drive (Men):  Jared Marshall

Closest To The Pin (Women):  Nancy Reece (that’s not a typo – she’s that good!)

Closest To The Pin (Men):  Mr. Kim

After the scramble awards were given, our partners, Bill, John, Weston and Tricia, thanked everybody for coming and helping our business grow.  And with that, they presented long-time advisor and potato expert Duane “Sarge” Preston with a plaque and logo shirt to thank him for all of his years of advice and helping Gold Dust and Walker Brothers grow into the thriving businesses they are today.  They also took a moment to thank Lexi, Sarah Mendez and Necia Phillips for their hard work on putting on another terrific Open House Field Day.

Dan Jepsen loading chipping potatoes into cart driven by Trish Briones at the Running Y Ranch for Gold Dust Potatoes' 2013 Open House Field Day.
Bet you can’t guess how many times Dan was told he needed to clubs and not potatoes
Ken Hibbard tees off with a chipping potato at Gold Dust Potato Processors' 2013 Open House Field Day golf scramble.
Ken demonstrates his crushing power . . . on a potato
Mike Delisle hitting out of a sand trap at the Running Y Ranch golf course.
A little sand doesn’t scare Mike
Annie Sproule, Tricia Hill and Maria Contreras watch Katie Walker swing at the Running Y Ranch golf course.
Let ‘er rip, Katie!
Matt Huffman of Huffman Brothers Farm goes for a birdie at the Running Y Ranch golf course.
Matt is definitely going for the pin
Guests visit at the Pro Shop of the Running Y Ranch golf course for dinner at Gold Dust's 2013 Open House Field Day.
After a little golf, Gold Dust’s guests settle in for a little dinner
Matt Thompson, Patrick Hagan and Sanjay Prasad were the second place team at Gold Dust's 2013 Open House Field Day golf scramble.
And here’s the second place team Matt, Pat and Sanjay
First place team Greg Addington, Eddie Staunton and Paul Sproule laugh as they pick up their trophy jackets at the Gold Dust Open House Field Day dinner at the Running Y lodge.
There’s nothing funny about first place, Greg, Eddie and Paul!
Maria Contreras, Tricia Hill, Katie Walker and Annie Sproule fanning the $400 prize they received for last place at the Gold Dust Open House Field Day golf scramble, which they later donated to Make-A-Wish Oregon.
They may have gotten last place in the scramble, but these ladies were first place in generosity of the teams
Mr. Kim won Men's KP (closest to the pin) at the 2013 Open House Field Day golf scramble held by Gold Dust Potato Processors.
Mr. Kim is not only the best dressed, but also Men’s KP winner
Jared Marshall took home Men's Longest Drive honors at Gold Dust Potato Processors' 2013 Open House Field Day golf scramble.
Taking home Men’s Longest Drive is Jared “The Cannon” Marshall
Nancy Reece won both Women's KP and Women's Longest Drive at Gold Dust Potato Processors' 13th Annual Open House Field Day golf scramble.
Women’s KP AND Longest Drive Winner Nancy Reece (methinks someone is a ringer!)
The Walker family thanks their guests and employees at Gold Dust's 2013 Open House Field Day dinner at the Running Y Ranch.
John, Bill, Tricia and Weston thank their guests for their ongoing support. Thank you!
John Walker giving Duane "Sarge" Preston a plaque thanking him for his years of giving Walker Brother advice for growing chipping potatoes.
John thanks “Sarge” for his years of advice
John and Bill Walker present Duane "Sarge" Preston with a shirt embroidered with the Gold Dust company logo as a thank you gift for his many years of potato growing advice and guidance.
John and Bill give Sarge a company shirt. Thanks, Sarge!
Mike Delisle of Mayo Mfg and Joe Dahlen of Crairie Industries give donations to Necia Phillips for Make-A-Wish Oregon at Gold Dust's annual Open House Field Day dinner.
Mike Delisle and Joe Dahlen open their check books for Make-A-Wish. Thanks, Mike and Joe!
John Walker and guests visit at Gold Dust Potato Processors' 2013 Open House Field Day dinner.
It’s been a pretty good day, huh Mr. Walker?
Bill Walker and Patrick Hagan visiting at Gold Dust's Open House Field Day dinner, held at the Running Y Resort golf course pro shop.
Whether it’s whiskey or business, Bill and Patrick are having a serious talk

Another of the newest, and perhaps best, additions to the Open House Field Day was fundraising for Make-A-Wish Oregon.  As you may have read in a previous post about our sponsorship of Make-A-Wish Oregon, this organization has become dear to the Walker family and Gold Dust employees.  As Katie Walker, a Make-A-Wish wish granter, pointed out, the average wish costs $7,000 to grant.  Throughout the course of the day, Gold Dust’s guests and employees raised $1,900 for Make-A-Wish, including the $400 cash prize the last place team donated.  And more pledges are coming in!

Before we wrap up this post, Tricia, Weston, John and Bill would like to thank everybody for taking time from their busy schedules and joining us for our Open House Field Day.  They hope everyone had a good time and we’ll see everyone again next year.  And they’d be remiss if they didn’t give Lexi, Necia, Sarah, and Trish a big thanks for all of the help putting this event together and on the day itself.  Thank you, ladies!

Gold Dust and Walker Brothers' guests for their 2013 Open House Field Day golf scramble.
Now THIS is a gathering of smart and good-looking folks!
A team photo of Nancy Reece, Jan Walker, Suzi Frederickson and Dianne Spires at the Gold Dust Potato Processors 2013 Open House Field Day golf scramble.
Nancy Reece, Jan Walker, Suzi Frederickson and Dianne Spires
A team photo of Katie Walker, Tricia Hill, Maria Contreras and Annie Sproule at the 2013 Gold Dust Potatoes Open House Field Day golf scramble.
Katie Walker, Tricia (Walker) Hill, Maria Contreras and Annie Sproule
Kathy Poppe, Lexi Crawford, Tifanie Chavez and Brenda Walker pose for a team photo at Gold Dust Potato Processors' Open House Field Day golf scramble at the Running Y Ranch golf course.
Kathy Poppe, Lexi Crawford, Tifanie Chavez and Brenda Walker
A team photo of Cory Thompson, Howard Klassen, Rich Wright and Eric Jackson at the Running Y Ranch golf course for Gold Dust Potatoes' 2013 Open House Field Day.
Corey Thompson, Howard Klassen, Rich Wright and Eric Jackson
Weston Walker, Ken Hibbard, Mike Henard and Mr. Park stop for a team photo at the Gold Dust Potato Processors' 2013 Open House Field Day golf scramble.
Weston Walker, Ken Hibbard, Mike Henard and Mr. Park
A team photo of Bill Whitman, Jared Marshall, John Walker and Duane "Sarge" Preston at Gold Dust Potato Processors' 13th Annual Open House Field Day.
Bill Whitman, Jared Marshall, John Walker and Duane “Sarge” Preston
Nancy Kim, Bill Walker, Mr. Kim and Sunny Kang at the 2013 Open House Field Day golf scramble held by Gold Dust Potato Processors.
Nancy Kim, Bill Walker, Mr. Kim and Sunny Kang
A team photo of Sanjay Prasad, Matt Thompson and Patrick Hagan at Gold Dust Potatoes' 13th Annual Open House Field Day.
Sanjay Prasad, Matt Thompson and Patrick Hagan
A team photo of Darcy Hill, Mike Delisle, Emmanuel Rios and Matt Huffman at Gold Dust Potatoes' 2013 Open House Field Day.
Darcy Hill, Mike Delisle, Emmanuel Rios and Matt Huffman
A group photo of Greg Addington, Paul Sproule and Eddie Staunton at Gold Dust Potato Processors' 13th Annual Open House Field Day golf scramble.
Greg Addington, Paul Sproule and Eddie Staunton
Vern Frederickson, Joe Dahlen, Dave Reece and Sid Staunton pose for a team photo at Gold Dust's 2013 Open House Field Day golf scramble at the Running Y Ranch.
Vern Frederickson, Joe Dahlen, Dave Reece and Sid Staunton
Ron Marshall, Marshall Staunton, Steve Parkinson, Lucie Grant and Danny Lopez pose with Gold Dust employees Sarah Mendez and Trish Briones at the 2013 Open House Field Day golf scramble.
Ron Marshall, Sarah Mendez, Marshall Staunton, Trish Briones, Steve Parkinson, Lucie Grant and Danny Lopez
Daniel Jepsen, Bart Crawford and Marc Staunton pose for a team photo at the 13th Annual Open House Field Day for Gold Dust Potato Processors.
Daniel Jepsen, Bart Crawford and Marc Staunton

Filed Under: awards & recognition, chipping potatoes, community, customers and clients, Gold Dust Potato Processors, open house field day, potato shed, walker brothers

Update: Pik Nik In US Business Executive Winter Edition

February 5, 2013 By Gold Dust Farms Leave a Comment

A photo of Alma Dacanay, CEO of Pik Nik Foods, USA in a photo appearing in US Business Executive
Alma Dacanay, CEO of Pik Nik Foods, USA

You may recall in a past blog post about Pik Nik’s CEO Alma Dacanay visiting Gold Dust HQ , we mentioned that she and Pik Nik were going to be profiled in an upcoming edition of US Business Executive.  Well, we’re happy and very proud to announce that the time has finally come!

At the end of last month, we received an email saying the article about Alma and Pik Nik’s global reach was finally in print.  After a little waiting, we’ve finally found an online version of the story that’s available to subscribers and non-subscribers alike.  If you have a few minutes to check it out, it’s an interesting read and Alma gives a few insights to Pik Nik’s success, such as why they use the cans they use and flavors they’ve developed.

Before we wrap this up, all of us at Gold Dust and Walker Brothers would like to say congratulations to Alma and we can’t wait to see what the future brings for her and Pik Nik’s ongoing success!

If you’re a subscriber, you can read it here.   If not, you can read it here!

Pages 112-113 of the Winter Edition 2013 US Business Executive, article "Pik-Nik Foods USA: Delighting the World, One Canister at a Time" featuring Alma Dacanay
Pik-Nik Foods USA: Delighting the World, One Canister at a Time – pages 112-113 of this quarter’s US Business Executive, Winter 2013

Filed Under: awards & recognition, customers and clients

Pik-Nik Visits Gold Dust

November 2, 2012 By Gold Dust Farms 3 Comments

Tricia Hill poses with a pyramid of Shoestring Potatoes provided by Pik-Nik Foods of Burlingame, CA.
Tricia and the Gold Dust crew would like to thank Alma Dacanay of Pik-Nik for visiting and all the snacks!

Every once in a while, one of our customers will make the long drive (or even longer flight) from their home to our fields and facilities.  We love to show our guests our fields (when they’re full of chipping potatoes, of course!) as well as our world class processing plant when it’s running at full speed.  Our customers help us grow and innovate, which in turn allows us to provide a better potato so they can provide a better snack to their customers.

Last month, Alma Dacanay and her son, Carlo, paid a visit to our Malin packing shed.  Ms. Dacanay is the CEO of Pik-Nik Foods down in Burlingame, California.  While here, we were able to show her the quality of our potatoes as well as what we’re doing to ensure the quality of them from harvest to storage and through the processing plant.

If you’re not familiar with Pik-Nik (how could you not be?), they’ve been frying up American favorites such favorites as French Fried Onions, Cheese Balls and Curls, and, our favorite, Shoestring Potatoes, for over 75 years.  Since Pik-Nik only sources fresh potatoes from Oregon and California, their Shoestring Potatoes are absolutely delicious.  Think perhaps we’re a little biased since they’re our customer? Then you really need to grab a can of them and try them for yourself!  They’re fun to eat and Pik-Nik has a wide range of flavors, including 50% Less Salt, Ketchup, Lime and Chili, and Honey Mustard.  There’s a flavor for everyone and we’re sure you’ll find your favorite.  And then you still have Cheese Curls and Balls and French Fried Onions to choose from too!

The selection of Pik Nik Snack Foods including Shoestring Potatoes, Cheese Curls and Balls, and French Fried Onions.
Mmmm, Shoestring Potatoes, French Fried Onions and Cheese Balls and Curls. Is it snack time yet?

We’d like to thank Ms. Dacanay and Carlisle for visiting us and we hope their visit was as enjoyable for them as it was for us.  And thank you very much for the cans of Shoestring Potatoes you left for us to snack on!  We enjoyed them very much.

And if you want to learn more about Ms. Dacanay and the work she’s been doing with Pik-Nik, be sure to keep an eye open for a case study about her and Pik-Nik in an upcoming issue of the Food and Drink segment of the quarterly magazine US Business Executive.

 

Filed Under: chipping potatoes, customers and clients, Gold Dust Potato Processors, potato customers

2012 Open House Field Day – Part 2

September 7, 2012 By Gold Dust Farms Leave a Comment

Gold Dust and Walker Brothers staff with guests for Gold Dust Potato Processors' 12th annual Open House Field Day.
Who’s ready for golf?

Just as promised, the second part of our 12th Annual Open House Field Day coverage!

After a quick sack lunch of sandwiches, apples, a cookie and potato chips (of course!), the Gold Dust crew and our guests headed back to the Running Y for a round of golf and nice a dinner at the club house.  As we do every year, the golf teams competed in a scramble, playing the best ball at every hole.  And every year, the competition is pretty fierce.  So who took home top (and bottom!) honors?

1st Place: Chris Moudry, Kevin Kane, Joe Dahlen, and Fernando Martinez

2nd Place: John Walker, Jason Tryan, Duane “Sarge” Preston, and Marshall Staunton

Last Place: Jan Walker, Suzi Frederickson, Dianne Spires, Katie Walker

Men’s KP (closest to the pin): Duane “Sarge” Preston

Women’s KP: Jan Walker

Men’s Longest Drive: Matt Thompson

Women’s Longest Drive: Maria Contreras

And let it be known, John had the best time out of everyone and hit a whopping 183 yard drive!

Everyone had a wonderful time on the course and enjoyed a delicious dinner put together by the Running Y catering staff afterwards.  Before the night ended, Bill, John and Tricia thanked our growers and vendors for working with us, our customers for helping us grow and their continued support, and they thanked Necia, Sarah and Tifanie for their help.  Without our suppliers, vendors, growers and customers, Gold Dust and Walker Brothers wouldn’t be able to take on challenges like farming the Running Y Ranch, and the support we get from everyone is very much appreciated.  And of course, without the hard work of our staff, we wouldn’t be able to put on a successful Open House Field Day!  So, Necia, Tifanie and Sarah, thank you for your hard work on making a wonderful day for our guests.

We hope everyone who attended had a fun day and made it home safely.  Thank you to everyone who attended and your continued support of our business.  We look forward to seeing everyone next year!

And now – more pictures!

Gold Dust and Walker Brothers staff with guests for Gold Dust Potato Processors' 12th annual Open House Field Day.
Who’s ready for golf?
Jason Tryan, John Walker, Duane "Sarge" Preston and Marshall Staunton at the Running Y Ranch golf course.
Don’t let the smiles fool you – these guys are here to play
Duane "Sarge" Preston teeing off on the 9th hole at the Running Y Ranch.
Woweee, Sarge! Anybody watching that one?
Corey Thomson, Howard Klassen and Darcy Hill at the ninth hole of the Running Y golf course.
What they lack in numbers, they make up for in being good-looking
Kevin Kane, Joe Dahlen, Fernando Martinez and Chris Moudry at the Running Y Ranch golf course.
That thing they’re keeping their eyes on? It’s the prize.
Bart Crawford, Ty Hulse and Cory Chavez at the Gold Dust Potatoes golf scramble.
The second most handsome group on the course
Bart Crawford demonstrates a beautiful golf swing on the Running Y Ranch's Arnold Palmer designed golf course.
When Bart is “farming” on the Running Y, he really means golfing
Moua Lo, Paul Sproule, Sid Staunton and Dan Jepsen at the Running Y Golf Course for Gold Dust's 2012 Open House Field Day.
These guys look happy to be on the course!
Paul Sproule smiling while watching his ball on the 9th hole of the Running Y Ranch golf course.
It was that good of a stroke, eh Paul?
Vern Frederickson, Greg Addington, Jared Marshall and Matt Huffman at the Running Y Resort.
I smell a ringer . . . .
Jared Marshall powers the ball down to the green on the ninth hole of the Running Y Resort golf course.
There he is! Ringer! Ringer! Go back on tour!
Weston Walker, Ron Marshall, Tony Gudajtes and Jeff Gibson enjoying a round of golf at the Running Y Ranch.
Apparently this team was sponsored by Crown Royal
Jeff Gibson prepares to tee off on the 9th hole of the Running Y Ranch golf course.
Most people take a practice swing. Jeff, on the other hand, not so much.
Patrick Hagan, Marc Staunton, Matthew Thompson and Sanjay Prasad golfing at the Running Y Ranch.
So, which one of you guys is gonna’ get the longest drive today?
Sanjay Prasad studies the green on the 9th hole at the Running Y golf course.
C’mon, Sanjay! “Happy Gilmore” it!
Katie Walker, Dianne Spires, Suzi Frederickson and Jan Walker at the Running Y golf course.
Calm, poised and ready to kick some tail
Kathy Poppe, Tifanie Chavez, Maria Contreras and Tricia Hill having fun at the Gold Dust Open House Field Day golf scramble.
Okay, you ladies are having to much fun. Less smiling, more golfing!
Mike Delisle, Kyle Brungardt, Bill Walker and Ken Hibbard at the Running Y Ranch's golf course.
The average height of this team? 6’2″. Seriously.
Mike Delisle driving the ball on the Running Y Ranch golf course.
Nice swing, Mike! Nice shot, Sarah!
Dinner at the Running Y Club House for the 2012 Gold Dust Open House Field Day.
Dinner Time!
Guests visit during dinner at the Running Y Ranch Club House.
Good food, good drinks and good conversations abound
Bill Walker visits with guests during dinner at Gold Dust Potatoes' Open House Field Day.
Bill making the rounds and thanking guests for coming
Guests enjoy supper and a slideshow at the Open House Field Day dinner put on by Gold Dust Potato Processors.
Guests were treated to a slide show as they visited and ate dinner
Matt Thomson and Paul Sproule visiting after eating dinner at the Gold Dust Open House Field Day.
Matt and Paul trading notes on . . . golf tees?
Guests continue to visit after dinner at the Running Y Resort club house.
Conversations continuing after the plates are cleared
Duane "Sarge" Preston visits with Dianne Spires at the Gold Dust Open House Field Day dinner.
Sarge making the rounds
Duane "Sarge" Preston, John Walker, Jason Tryan and Marshall Staunton accepting 2nd place at the Gold Dust Open House Field Day dinner.
Here’s the team with 2nd place honors
Joe Dahlen, Kevin Kane, Chris Moudry and Fernando Martinez receive first place awards at the Gold Dust Open House Field Day dinner.
And here’s 1st place! Eyes on the prize the whole time.
Tricia Walker and Necia Phillips award Duane "Sarge" Preston with a club of his choice for Men's Closest To The Pin.
Sarge taking home Men’s KP honors
Jan Walker took home a spa basket for Women's Closest To The Pin at the Gold Dust golf scramble.
Jan wins a spa basket for Women’s KP
Necia Phillips awarding Matt Thompson with a golf club for Men's Longest Drive at the Gold Dust golf scramble.
Matt Thompson took home Men’s Longest Drive
Maria Contreras awarded for Women's Longest Drive at the Gold Dust Open House Field Day golf scramble
Maria Contreras drove long for for Women’s Longest Drive
Katie Walker, Tricia Hill (standing in for Suzi Frederickson), Dianne Spears and Jan Walker winning prizes for last place.
Even being last paid off!
Bill Walker, Tricia Hill and John Walker thank their guests for attending the 2012 Open House Field Day.
Bill, Tricia and John thanking their guests and their hardworking crew
John Walker telling guests about his fun day and long drive at the Running Y Ranch.
If you doubt John had the most fun, then you haven’t seen this photo!
Tifanie Chavez with her family receiving thanks for her hard work to put on the 2012 Open House Field Day.
Thanks for your help, Tif!
Bill Walker, Tricia Hill, Matt Huffman and John Walker talking to guests at the 12th Annual Open House Field Day.
Bill, Tricia, Matt Huffman and John cutting up
Dinner guests Sanjay Prasad, Patrick Hagan, Matt Thompson, Cassie Thompson and Marc Staunton visiting.
That must be a pretty good story!
Katie and Weston Walker visiting with Ron Marshall and his son, Jared, at the Running Y club house.
The newest Walker Family visiting with the Marshalls

Filed Under: customers and clients, Gold Dust Potato Processors, open house field day, potato customers, Running Y Ranch, walker brothers

2012 Open House Field Day

August 30, 2012 By Gold Dust Farms Leave a Comment

Sing at the Running Y Ranch welcoming Gold Dust.
A warm welcome from the Running Y staff

If you happened to look at  your calendar last week, you may have noticed the third Tuesday of August was already here.  Why does that particular Tuesday matter, you ask?  It’s time for the annual Open House Field Day, of course!

This year we held our 12th annual Open House Field Day on August 21st.  We were favored with a pleasant amount of sunshine and despite the large forest fires burning north, south and east of us, the wind kept the smoke at bay and the skies clear.  The day started with breakfast at the Running Y Lodge, where Weston and Kevin Kane from RaboBank put together a presentation.  Afterwards, the field tours commenced.

Since we’ve been working the Running Y Ranch this year and are proud of what we’ve accomplished in the several past months, we thought it was fitting to show off a couple of the potato fields we have planted there.  Weston, John and Dan fielded questions about the varieties, the soil and quality of the chipping potato crop.  Our guests were even treated to an impromptu lesson about potato plants and potato seed by none other than Duane “Sarge” Preston, professor emeritus from the University of Minnesota.  Not only is Sarge well-known, highly respected potato expert, he’s also an all-around nice guy.

After the tour of Running Y Ranch fields, everybody headed down to Malin to tour the packing shed.  Bill, John, Weston and plant manager Matt Thompson guided our guests through the packing shed and showed them samples of varieties our agronomist Daniel Jepsen dug up.  Along with fresh potato samples, the varieties were fried up to show how nicely they work for potato chips as well as to demonstrate the differences between varieties.  Discussions surrounded the quality of the chipping potatoes that were presented, and a few people even snuck a taste of the sample chips!

Sign at the Running Y Ranch welcoming Gold Dust.
A warm welcome from the Running Y staff
A group of visitors gets tour of chipping potato field at Running Y Ranch.
After breakfast, we headed out to the potato fields at the Running Y
John Walker and his nephew, Weston, discuss the upcoming chipping potato crop.
John and Weston showing off the chipping potato crop
John Walker discusses the chipping potato crop with guests in a potato field.
John explaining why the dirt at the Running Y Ranch is sooooooo good for chipping potatoes
Weston Walker showing a sample of the chipping potatoes in a field at the Running Y Ranch.
Let us see those chippers, Weston!
Duane "Sarge" Preston, Professor Emeritus from the University of Minnesota, gives impromptu lesson on potato seed.
“Sarge” Preston schooling our guests on the how’s of potato seed
Gold Dust agronomist Daniel Jepsen educates guests about the chipping potato crop.
Agronomist Daniel Jepsen sharing his hands-on knowledge of how to grow high quality chipping potatoes
Bill Walker and growing partner Matt Huffman talk about chipping potatoes with guests at the Running Y Ranch.
Bill and grower Matt Huffman giving details about this year’s chipping potato crops
Tricia Hill discussing chipping potatoes and soil quality with guests at the Running Y Ranch.
Tricia, out of the office and talking chipping potatoes and quality dirt
Vehicles lined up along a chipping potato field on the Running Y Ranch.
And now it’s time to go to Malin!
Matt Thompson, plant manager, showing off Gold Dust's potato processing plant in Malin, OR.
Matt showing off his pride and joy – our potato processing plant
A variety of chipping potatoes on display.
A chipping potato variety sample provided by Mr. Jepsen
A table with chipping potato and potato chip samples in the Gold Dust packing shed.
Like how a certain chip fries up? Now you know which chipping potato it is!
Paul Sproule of PD Sproule talking about the varieties of chipping potatoes grown by Gold Dust.
Mr. Sproule explaining the qualities of each chipping potato variety
Bill Walker, CEO of Gold Dust Potatoes, discussing the differences in chipping potato varieties.
Bill pointing out the difference between how potato chips fry up
Weston Walker answering a question about chipping potato varieties at the Gold Dust potato packing shed in Malin, Oregon.
Weston fielding a question at the shed
Bill Walker listening to concerns about chipping potatoes at the Gold Dust potato processing plant
It’s unanimous – the spuds look fantastic
Daniel Jepsen, agronomist, and Weston Walker discussing chipping potato varieties from field digs.
If you have a question about the varieties and how they’re doing, these are the two guys to ask!

As we do every year, after the shed tour, we treated our guests to a round of golf at the Arnold Palmer-designed Running Y golf course.  Following golf, dinner was served at the club house where awards for longest drive, closest to pin, top team scores and lowest team scores were awarded.  Want to see those pictures?  You’ll have to tune in for our next blog post on the Open House Field Day!

 

Filed Under: chipping potatoes, customers and clients, farm, Gold Dust Potato Processors, open house field day, potato customers, potato shed, Running Y Ranch, walker brothers

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From Our Farm Blog

  • 2018 Klamath Basin Potato Festival
  • Chipping Potato Harvest 2018
  • Open House Field Day 2018
  • Small Changes for Big Improvements In Our Packing Shed
  • Check Us Out On Facebook!

We’re Hiring!

Looking for a job? Check out our latest Employment Opportunities!

Logistics Manager – We need someone with people and transportation experience to manage our small trucking brokerage.

Agronomist – Want to get from behind the desk and out of the lab and into the fields? We have a great opportunity for the right person.

Payroll Bookkeeper – If you have 3 years of progressive accounting experience and great attention to detail, this job is for you!

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