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CapitalPress.com
Friday, May 1, 2020
People & Places
Sweet potatoes gain ground
By JULIA HOLLISTER
For the Capital Press
Eric Buhrmann, general
manager of Mininger Foods
in Merced County, Calif.,
says sweet
potatoes
have every-
thing a body
needs.
“Sweet
potatoes
are a well-
rounded food Sweet pota-
that contains toes ready
vitamin A, for harvest.
vitamin C,
calcium and is loaded with
potassium,” he told the Cap-
ital Press.
That, in large part, is why
they have gained in popular-
ity over the years as a health-
ful alternative to potatoes. In
2009, 5.9 million hundred-
weight of sweet potatoes were
raised in California, according
to the USDA. By last year, the
state’s sweet potato crop had
grown to 8.1 million hundred-
weight, an increase of 37%.
Overall, California’s pro-
duction of sweet potatoes and
yams has nearly quadrupled
since the late 1970s and is
second only to North Carolina
in annual volume, according
to the USDA.
Nathan Mininger, presi-
dent of Mininger Foods, said
there is a secret to growing
beautiful sweet potatoes: the
sand.
“Heavy, rocky soil can hin-
der growth and form crooked
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NATHAN
MININGER
Hometown: Atwater,
Calif. (Merced County)
Family: wife, Debbie, and
five adult children
Courtesy of Nathan Mininger
Nathan Mininger, president and owner of Mininger Foods in Merced County, Calif.,
grows six varieties of sweet potatoes. He says the public is beginning to eat more
sweet potatoes because of their good taste and health benefits.
or ugly sweet potatoes; but
there is a sand belt here in
Merced County where our
pretty sweet potatoes grow
without resistance,” Mininger
said.
The difference between
yams and sweet potatoes
probably goes back to early
marketing.
A yam is orange inside and
out, sweet and has lots of vita-
min A and beta carotene.
A sweet potato has white
flesh on the inside when
baked or boiled. They hold
their texture and are higher in
potassium.
Basically, though, both are
sweet potatoes.
Mininger worked for years
at A.V. Thomas Produce
before going out on his own
in the early 1990s, according
to the company website.
Mininger grows six variet-
ies of sweet potatoes — Cov-
ington (traditional), Diane,
Burgundy, Bonita, Mura-
saki and Stokes Purple — on
about 1,000 acres with A.V.
Thomas, a California-based
grower and packer.
“I enjoy row crops because
every year you start from the
beginning,” he said. “Each
variety matures differently,
from 90 days to 120 days.”
Around the middle of Feb-
ruary and into March, work-
ers cover seed potatoes in
plastic-covered hotbeds.
In April and May, the pota-
toes are transplanted into the
fields.
Harvest lasts from August
through the end of October.
Because of the sandy soil,
curing is not necessary. The
sweet potatoes are stored year
around.
The increase in the vol-
ume of sweet potatoes grown
serves as a beacon for the
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Occupation: Sweet po-
tato grower and founder,
Mininger Foods
published weekly by EO Media Group,
Quote: “I enjoy row crops
because every year you
start from the beginning.”
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increase in consumption, and
that’s a good sign.
“I do think people are
beginning to understand
the health benefits of eating
sweet potatoes on a regular
basis,” Mininger said. “There
are many, many ways of eat-
ing sweet potatoes today: in
pies, casseroles, fried, hash
browns, soups, salads and
baked, of course.”
That is a break in tradi-
tion, he said, adding that “in
the past, many people seemed
to think Easter, Thanksgiving
and Christmas was the only
time you were supposed to
enjoy sweet potatoes.”
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Klamath Water Users offer scholarship drawing
By HOLLY DILLEMUTH
For the Capital Press
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore.
— All high school students
in their senior year in Klam-
ath, Modoc, and Siskiyou
counties are eligible to enter a
drawing to win a scholarship
from the Klamath Water Users
Association.
The association, which
represents irrigation districts
throughout the Klamath Basin,
started the initial fund with a
contribution of $500. The more
individuals and businesses that
contribute, the more scholar-
ships can be awarded to seniors
through the fund.
The deadline for seniors
to enter for a chance to win a
scholarship is midnight on June
7.
The effort has so far col-
lected $1,500 — enough to
award three scholarships, said
Chelsea Shearer, administra-
tive assistant to KWUA Exec-
utive Director Paul Simmons.
Shearer, whose daughter is a
The Klamath Water Users Association has set up a schol-
arship fund for graduating seniors.
2020 Henley High graduate,
pitched the concept to the board
of directors.
“It’s just a way to let (the
students) know that we’re all
thinking of them and we stand
behind them and their goals,”
Shearer said.
Shearer said to enter, seniors
must send a senior photo with
their first and last name (to be
used in KWUA’s social media
campaign), the name of their
high school and one sentence
describing their plan for what
they will do after high school.
Shearer said she will post
a photo of a student who has
entered the scholarship contest
on KWUA’s Facebook page
every day as a way to show the
association is behind them.
Those still working to com-
plete their graduation require-
ments are welcome to enter to
win a scholarship.
“It’s not about who’s bet-
ter,” Shearer said. “It’s about,
‘Hey, you did this, you made it
this far, and we’re here to sup-
port you.’”
Ben DuVal, vice president
of KWUA, said he and other
producers can empathize with
seniors under the current cir-
cumstances that ended their
school year.
“Ag producers right now in
the Klamath Basin — we defi-
nitely understand uncertainty,
the disappointment of working
hard and making plans to see
them fall apart,” DuVal said.
“So we can empathize with the
seniors and saw that we could
hopefully improve the future
for them.”
Tricia Hill, president of
KWUA, also acknowledged
that the association wants to
do what it can to support the
class of 2020 in light of current
events.
“There’s an excitement to
the end of your senior year and
a camaraderie with your class-
mates that you’ve been going
to school with, and all of that
they’re never going to get,” Hill
said. “They’re going to miss out
on it.
“In a year that everything is
just so grim ... it was something
that we could do that was posi-
tive and uplifting.”
Every senior who enters will
have their name entered into a
drawing to receive a scholar-
ship. All donated funds will go
toward a scholarship.
Shearer encourages dona-
tions from individuals, groups,
or businesses of any amount
toward the scholarship fund
through June 7. Checks can
be made payable to: KWUA
Senior Scholarship, 2312 S.
Sixth St., Suite A, Klamath
Falls, OR 97601.
To enter a drawing for the
scholarship, seniors must sub-
mit required information to
chelsea@kwua.org by June
7. The recipients of the schol-
arships will be chosen at ran-
dom and will be announced on
KWUA’s Facebook page on
June 9.
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Capital Press
Spokane Junior Livestock Show goes virtual
Show managers look
to connect youth
sellers with buyers
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
The Junior Livestock Show
of Spokane will go on — online.
Due to the COVID-19 quar-
antine, the show will offer a vir-
tual version on May 7.
Youth participants will vid-
eotape themselves at home
showing their animals. Judges
will view the videos and judge
the animals in their market
class, show manager Lynn Cot-
ter told the Capital Press.
Judges
will watch
the video for
quality and
whether ani-
mals are mar-
ket-ready as
Lynn Cotter best they can,
she said.
“It’s a learning year for
all of us,” she said. “Our big-
gest thing is we wanted to give
the kids the opportunity to do
something with these animals.
They’re home from school, they
still have these animals, they’re
going to the barn, feeding them
every day.”
Results will be posted fol-
lowing the show.
Participants have the option
ONLINE
http://www.juniorshow.
org/
of participating or getting their
entry fees returned, Cotter said.
About 550 youths were slated
to show 700 animals during the
show.
She’s hoping at least 200 to
300 youths will still participate.
There will be no livestock
sale in conjunction with the
show.
Cotter said the show has
encouraged youths to pre-sell
their animals. She’s put the
word out on social media to
youths to let her know if they
don’t have their animal sold.
She currently has a list of
roughly 12 lambs and goats still
to be purchased, and will also
take names of potential buyers
for steers and hogs, she said.
Holding a virtual show
may help with the show’s bud-
get, Cotter said. There won’t
be the cost of renting the Spo-
kane County Fairgrounds, for
example.
But there are still the costs
of putting on the event, includ-
ing prize money for the hog
carcass contest, the ambassa-
dor program to promote next
year’s show and more funding
in senior scholarships.
But what the next year will
hold for the show’s funding is
an unknown, she said.
“...Who knows what will
happen next year after all of
this,” she said.
Right now, though, she said,
the biggest need is for the youths
to sell their animals. For exam-
ple, a youth will purchase a pig
for $200 and invest $300 in its
care and feeding. When the
animal is sold, the youth will
hopefully make that money
back and more.
“As the meat prices are
rising in the store, I think it’s
gonna be a heck of a deal to
buy from these kids,” she said.
FFA members must wear
official dress in their videos.
The entry deadline is May 5.
P.O. Box 2048
Salem, OR 97308-2048
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CALENDAR
Submit upcoming ag-related
events on www.capitalpress.com
or by email to newsroom@capital-
press.com.
SUNDAY-TUESDAY
MAY 17-19
The Alltech Ideas Conference:
Central Bank Center, 430 W. Vine
St., Lexington, Ky. The 36th Alltech
Ideas Conference will explore inno-
vative solutions within the global
food-supply chain. More than 40
topics are slated for discussion.
Website: http://one.alltech.com
WEDNESDAY-
THURSDAY, MAY
20-21
AgTC Virtual Annual Meeting:
9-11 a.m. Pacific each day. Online.
An amazing line up of speakers,
fastest paced Annual Meeting ever,
tackling the challenges facing
shippers, carriers, ports, all others,
right now. Website: https://agtrans.
org/events/
WEDNESDAY-
THURSDAY JUNE 3-4
Stockmanship Clinic: 8 a.m.
Pendleton Convention Center, 1601
Westgate, Pendleton, Ore. This
hands-on clinic will focus on prac-
tical applications of various live-
stock handling techniques, why
low stress handling is important
and helping to design a livestock
handling facility for a local ranch.
Sponsored by Roots of Resilience
and Oregon State University Exten-
sion. Contact: Andrea Mann at 509-
670-7743 or mannandrea@aol.com,
or Beth Robinette at beth@lazyr-
beef.com
SATURDAY, JUNE 20
Goat and Lamb Clinic:
9 a.m.-2 p.m. Red Pavilion,
Scio, Ore. Join us for a prac-
tice showmanship contest and
some hands-on learning on
how to get your animal show-
ring ready. Contact: Teri Mcken-
zie, 503-302-9901, teri@4Mlive -
stock.com
SATURDAY-SUNDAY
JUNE 20-21
Glenwood Ketchum Kalf
Rodeo: 12:30 p.m. Glenwood,
Wash. The 86th Annual Ketchum
Kalf Rodeo will be held in Glen-
wood, Wash. The Glenwood
Rodeo Association is a non-
profit, all-volunteer organiza-
tion. Contact: Mary L. Pierce,
509-364-3427
twitter.com/CapitalPress
MONDAY-TUESDAY
JUNE 22-23
Idaho Cattle Association Sum-
mer Roundup: Burley Convention
Center, Burley, Idaho. The annual
summer conference includes pre-
sentations on topics of interest to
cattle producers, as well as social
events and a golf tournament.
Agenda to be announced. Website:
http://www.idahocattle.org
FRIDAY, JULY 24
16th Annual AgFor-
estry Golf Tournament:
9:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Apple Tree
Golf Course, 8804 Occiden-
tal Ave., Yakima, Wash. Join the
AgForestry network of alumni
and supporters for an after-
noon of golf, camaraderie
and supporting future AgFor-
estry Leaders. Contact: Melissa
Skomer-Kafton, 509-926-9113,
melissa@agforestry.org Web-
site: http://agforestry.org/
golf-tournament-2020/
SATURDAY SEPT. 19
Small Farm School 2020: Clack-
amas Community College, Clairmont
Hall, 19600 S Molalla Ave., Oregon
City, Ore. Small Farm School is a full-
day event with hands-on workshops
and classroom sessions for beginning
and small-scale commercial farm-
ers. Subscribe to the mailing list for
updates. The school is a collaboration
between OSU Extension, Clackamas
Soil and Water Conservation District
and Clackamas Community College.
Fee: $75 Contact: Clint Taylor, 979-
820-3980 or clint.taylor@oregon-
state.edu
youtube.com/CapitalPressvideo
Index
COVID-19 ............................................. 4-5
Markets .................................................13
Opinion ...................................................6
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