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October 26, 2018 CapitalPress.com 11 Elk kill permits are meant to reduce property damage ELK from Page 1 Farm groups suggest allowing landowners to hunt year-round on their property, with the option of opening their land to other hunters. The Stillaguamish Tribe says it will oppose more hunting, according to the tribe’s written objectives submit- ted to Fish and Wildlife. The elk in the valley are im- portant because they are the source of elk expanding the herd to the south, according to the tribe. Rather than more hunting and reducing the herd’s overall population, the tribe stated that farm damage should be responded to case by case. Efforts to reach the tribe for further comment were unsuccessful. Fish and Wildlife has been re- sponding to farm damage with fenc- es, hazing and permission to shoot an elk damaging property. The ef- forts have not kept elk from becom- ing valley residents. The kill permits are meant to reduce property damage, but not to control the overall population. Ran- dy Good, vice president of the Skagit County Cattlemen’s Association, said Thursday he has had elk on his property for 100 straight days, but he won’t seek a kill permit. “It’s an effort to quiet landowners from complaining,” he said. “I’m not going to succumb to a permit.” The department is considering trapping and moving elk, though it’s looking into the risk of spreading hoof rot, which has shown up in the herd. “We do not want to move that dis- ease around,” Windrope said. Fish and Wildlife hopes to open up another 100 square miles to hunt- ing by 2021 by working with private landowners in the valleys. Hunting on private ground has become increasingly limited as forest landowners have restrict- ed vehicle access to protect their property from vandals, thieves and litter bugs, according to the herd plan. Total potato acreage of 311,316 represents 1.15 percent gain from a year ago IDAHO from Page 1 When Muir contemplated leaving his 22-year corporate marketing career to lead the Idaho Potato Commission, he told commissioners and staff he would re-establish the Idaho potato as a brand. His concerns ranged from a lack of national advertising and international fresh-potato sales to a risk that Idaho potatoes were becom- ing almost generic despite the state’s reputation for growing them. He also said more variet- ies were needed. “They knew what they were getting,” Muir said. “We are going to re-establish the Ida- ho potato brand as the premier brand in produce.” In Muir’s first year, 2003, farm-gate revenue from pota- toes was $536 million, down 19.7 percent from the previous year and 3.3 percent below the five-year average at the time. This year’s farm-gate revenue is $975 million, up 1 percent from 2017 and 4 percent above the most recent five-year aver- age. From 2003 to 2018, the commission increased its an- nual budget 37.6 percent, from $10.9 million to $15 million. Much of that came in 2008 in the form of a 25 percent increase in the industry-paid checkoff for marketing and re- search. The checkoff rose from 10 cents per hundredweight to 12.5 cents, largely to pay for national advertising. The rest of the budget increase was gener- ated by higher sales volume. Financial gains over the years reflect the diligence by farmers, fresh-pack shippers, processors and researchers in addition to revved-up branding, Muir said. “Frank Muir has done an outstanding job branding Ida- ho potatoes,” said Aaron Hep- worth, a potato farmer outside Rupert and board member for national marketing group Pota- toes USA. “Some of his ideas have been just phenomenal, and with the implementation of those we’ve just seen huge gains that weren’t even antici- pated.” Surprise success The Big Idaho Potato Truck’s success surprised even the ever-optimistic Muir. The semi-trailer-sized potato replica was supposed to tour the U.S. only in 2012 to mark the com- mission’s 75th anniversary. Instead, it has been so popular it has kept touring each spring and summer, making special appearances in parades and at sporting events and promo- tions. This month, it was at a regional audition for television performance show “American Idol” in Coeur d’Alene. “There were a lot of peo- ple who brainstormed as part of this,” Muir said of the truck campaign. Local and national advertising firms, commission staff and Boise-area truck and trailer businesses made con- tributions to what started as a play on the longstanding post- card depicting a truck-mount- ed potato and declaring: “We Grow ’Em Big Here in Ida- ho.” “I really liked the idea but also realized the challenges of trying to do that on that mas- sive a scale,” Muir said. Listing all of the things that could go wrong with a big-truck tour and laying out preventive actions and contin- gency plans became a focus. So did overcoming potential objections about what the public could have considered merely promotional, he said. IPC tied the truck’s appear- ances to fundraising for Meals on Wheels, an American Heart Association women’s health campaign and various city-specific causes including food banks. Capital Press file Russet potatoes undergo transloading during a harvest in Southeast Idaho. Brand adds demand Hepworth said that while an Idaho grower’s financial results vary year to year, ef- forts to brand the state’s po- tatoes make the industry more sustainable in the long term and “create additional de- mand. That is more product that needs to come from Ida- ho, whether fresh, processed or dehydrated.” For example, proces- sors J.R. Simplot Co., Lamb Weston and McCain Foods — all of which expanded or up- graded Idaho facilities recent- ly — “want more production from Idaho so they can get a quality- or brand-associated premium price, which is what we pay the Idaho Potato Com- mission to do,” he said. Muir said total Idaho po- tato acreage of 311,316 this year represents a 1.15 percent gain from a year ago, driven mainly by the expansion of processors. The commission has also created global recognition for Idaho potatoes and invested heavily in research, said Dan Hargraves, who consults for the Southern Idaho Potato Cooperative. The cooperative negotiates, on behalf of mem- ber growers, annual contracts between growers and proces- sors. “And of late, there have been frozen potato products branded with the Idaho seal, and the commission has been instrumental working in that direction,” he said. “For the contract growers I work for, that is a really positive de- velopment. The industry is evolving and growers are evolving along with it. There has been a lot of consolidation and things are just changing. We think the commission is trying to be proactive and is addressing challenges in the marketplace.” tion within Southern Califor- nia farther from his family’s home, got word from his sis- ter in Boise that the Idaho Po- tato Commission was seeking a new chief executive. Ultimately the commis- sion extended an offer, and he said he would consider it. The commission chairman and vice chairman then met with him while he was visiting family in Utah. “That made a big impression on me.” Fighting back Thinkstockphotos.com A truck hauling potatoes in Idaho. bringing us back to our roots,” he said. Idaho Potato Commission Industry Relations Director Travis Blacker said there is widespread agreement among growers that having a high-profile brand is good. “They are proud to be Idaho potato growers,” he said. Muir, 63, grew up in Brigham City, Utah, where he was the first football player from his high school in years to earn a scholarship. Lead- ing up to that — he played defensive end at Utah State University — keeping track of his statistics and purpose- fully showing interest in play- ing college football provided early insight into the value of communicating a clear mes- sage and a strong belief. He would refine that skill set later on a mission in Chicago for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Muir then went on to Brigham Young Universi- ty, earning a dual bachelor’s degree in business manage- ment and communication in 1979 and an master’s degree in business administration in 1981. Muir’s contributions Brand revivals Americans were moving away from the potato when Muir came to the commis- sion, said Idaho Grower Ship- pers Association President and General Counsel Shawn Boyle. The association and PGI advocate for the industry on legislative matters at state and national levels. “During his time he has fo- cused on improving that, and He then worked about 2 1/2 years each for General Mills and R.T. French Co. as assistant brand manager and marketing manager, re- spectively. At General Mills, he earned three promotions working with some of the high-profile, consumer pack- aged-good brands of the era. At French, working in Idaho Falls, he helped grow a divi- sion Pillsbury ultimately ac- quired. From 1986 until he came to the IPC, he worked in Ful- lerton, Calif., for what origi- nally was Beatrice/Hunt-Wes- son. His first job there was to turn around the La Choy brand, a line of Asian foods, sauces and prepared meals. Beatrice was acquired by a holding company and broken up, with ConAgra in turn buy- ing Hunt-Wesson. “What I became known as was a turnaround specialist who rejuvenated previously well-known brands and did so on limited budgets,” Muir said. Developing this spe- cialty “gave me the creative license to think out of the box and build a brand with- in the structure and financial strength of a big company.” In his last three years with ConAgra, he and his teams roughly doubled, to around $1 billion, a 15-brand portfolio including Wesson Oil, Pam, Peter Pan, Van Kamp’s and Swiss Miss without laying off staff. “I was probably the lon- gest-surviving marketing guy at ConAgra,” Muir said. A creative, entrepre- neurial team was a key to success, along with “an en- vironment that promotes connection within the team and cross-functional team members from areas like mar- keting, sales, operations and research,” he said. “I learned that from General Mills. Al- ways believe in connecting with your consumer on an emotional level to establish brand loyalty.” Muir, who faced reloca- Muir, on arriving at the commission in mid-2003, fo- cused on popular low-carbo- hydrate diets. Consumption of potatoes, bananas and apples was in decline. “Nobody in produce was fighting back,” he said. “I don’t think they knew what to do.” One of his early moves was to pull a new TV ad that was running in California. It showed an animated potato with a sweetened look about it. It was replaced with an ad featuring a close-up of a natu- ral potato. “We needed to hit: Pota- toes are good for you,” he said. National fitness person- ality Denise Austin helped promote Idaho potatoes for a decade starting in 2004, and the American Heart Asso- ciation in 2011 — partly at Muir’s urging — certified the Idaho potato as heart-healthy. Among other initiatives, in- ternational marketing and in- dustry relations directors were added to commission staff. He and staff also targeted the local foods movement. Although Idaho consumers bought Idaho potatoes, the state’s small population lim- ited that segment. The com- mission aimed to make sure people in other states would still seek out Idaho potatoes. Idaho’s potato market share is growing even as the move- ment continues, he said. Muir said regional ad- vertising had been the focus when he arrived. The ad fo- cus is now national, includ- ing $3 million of the current year’s approximately $15 million budget spent to pro- duce and broadcast two ads for early fall to late spring. The Big Idaho Potato Truck and Middleton-area farmer Mark Coombs and his Spud Hound are featured in the two national TV ads. The first ran Sept. 15 during the Boise State-at-Oklahoma State col- lege football game on ESPN. It and another ad are slat- ed to run concurrently Oct. 22 through the start of April on various networks and a streaming service. Muir said this is the first year the com- mission filmed two spots in one year for its Big Idaho Po- tato Truck series — keeping the truck visible when it’s not touring. By working with cooper- ating partners such as media outlets, research consultants or other marketing groups such as Potatoes USA, IPC seeks to leverage each dollar it spends into much greater long-term value, he said. An annual advertising ex- penditure of about $450,000 also covers title sponsorship of the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl college football game televised nationally; the com- mission started that in 2011. The commission spends 80 percent of its budget on mar- keting and research, he said. Other IPC annual expendi- tures include around $1 mil- lion for research and $400,000 to promote fresh potatoes in more than 15 countries — “not bad for a landlocked state,” he said. The money goes to ex- penses such as advertising and trade shows, and meeting with distributors and chefs. Often, Idaho’s international efforts are combined to lever- age Potatoes USA’s efforts. Muir said Idaho now ships about 5 percent of its fresh potatoes to overseas, up from zero 15 years ago. Back on the field Muir lives in Eagle, a Boise suburb, with his wife, Cindy. They have four grown children. He stokes his competitive spirit with running, martial arts and playing each year in the Thanksgiving Day “turkey bowl” football game with a group of friends who are fair- ly serious players. “My objective is to score one touchdown so I can keep playing” the next year, he said. He’s played in 40 straight an- nual games.