Chris Voigt updated growers about long-range planning in the potato industry, research programs and government regulations during the annual Washington-Oregon Potato Conference.
Voigt, executive director of the Washington State Potato Commission, touched on the passage of free trade agreements in Korea, Panama and Columbia during the three-day event at Kennewick's Three Rivers Convention Center.
The agreements lifted tariffs between 18 and 20 percent, resulting in millions of dollars being pumped back into the U.S. potato industry annually. During the past year, there were no new rules from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulating farm dust from farm equipment.
