Michael Family Farms Supplies Potatoes Year-Round and Advocates for Children's Nutrition

Kathy Sponheim, a fourth-generation potato farmer, grew up around vegetables and found a passion for agriculture at an early age. When she was young, her dad said that she had to work somewhere else for at least two years before she could work on the family farm.

Kathy Sponheim:

"My hiatus ended up being 11 years."

After earning a degree in agribusiness and applied economics from Ohio State University, Kathy worked for more than a decade in sales and marketing at John Deere. In that time, she said she learned a lot of tips and tricks, including working with other people, to bring back to the family business. 

Michael Family Farms, which Kathy runs with her dad Todd, her brother Kyle and her husband Drew, is located in the Ohio Valley and grows round white and red potatoes. They are also partners with Fresh Solution Farms, a growing and packing facility in Michigan, where russets and yellow potatoes are grown. 

Kathy’s great grandfather started the farm in the 1950s with round white potatoes, and she’s seen the family business change significantly in recent decades.

Kathy Sponheim:

"Right as I was graduating college, we started to transition from seasonal to a year-round supply. That’s been the biggest transition in our family business. It allowed us to become a one-stop-shop for our customers. They can count on us to supply a full product line all year."

Kathy said Michael Family Farms has decades-long relationships with many of its customers, most of whom are retail stores in the Great Lakes region.

Kathy Sponheim:

"Our location is great just being close to where our potatoes end up. We value loyalty and longevity in our customers and partners. That has been a lot of work to maintain over the years, but part of what makes it work is excellent customer service."

Kathy said she and her family also take seriously their stewardship of the land, including responsible water use and reducing "food miles" (i.e., the distance their crops must travel after harvest).

Kathy Sponheim:

"As multigenerational farmers, if we weren’t stewards of the land, we wouldn’t have land to come back to. Cover crops, erosion control, land management — they’re table stakes to ensure we have a crop to plant next year. We’re also looking at new practices we haven’t thought of before, like packaging that’s fully compostable and recyclable."

Kathy, who has three young children, said children’s nutrition is her passion. She currently serves on Potatoes USA’s Nutrition and Health Committee.

Kathy Sponheim:

"To see my kids' classmates struggling with obesity or food insecurity at 6 or 7 years old is hard. It motivates me to spread the good word of potato nutrition. Potatoes are a food kids love, they’re a springboard to other vegetables, and they help kids eat a diverse diet."

When they're not working on the farm or supporting the potato industry, Kathy and her family enjoy traveling, sports and skiing (water and snow). Her favorite potato dish is "any version of a potato bar," where everyone assembles their own potato with their choice of toppings. For example, she and her husband had a potato martini bar at their wedding—mashed potatoes in martini glasses and a bar of toppings for guests.