Could potatoes help farmers transition out of intensive animal agriculture?

By Lukie Pieterse, Editor/Publisher Potato News Today

As more livestock and poultry farmers explore alternatives to industrial animal production, potatoes may deserve a place in the conversation – not as a simple substitute, but as a serious crop option with food-security value, market diversity and strong links to rural livelihoods.

A farmer-led transition movement gains momentum

The idea of helping farmers move away from industrial animal agriculture is no longer confined to theory. Through The Transfarmation Project, Mercy For Animals has built a farmer-focused initiative designed to support producers who want to transition from intensive animal agriculture toward plant-focused farm enterprises.

The project does not present transition as a slogan. Its work is practical: helping interested farmers assess their needs, evaluate existing infrastructure, consider new crops, identify markets, explore grants, and build farm plans that may offer a viable way forward. That farmer-centred approach matters. A producer leaving a poultry, hog or dairy system is not simply changing commodities. In many cases, they are trying to rebuild an entire business model, often after years of debt, contract dependency, family pressure and emotional strain.

For the potato industry, this raises an important question: could potatoes become part of that transition toolbox?

Why potatoes deserve a place in the discussion

Potatoes are not a niche crop. They are one of the world’s most important food crops, grown widely across regions and production systems, and valued for their yield potential, versatility, nutritional contribution and food-security role.

That matters because farmers considering transition need more than encouragement. They need crops with real markets, agronomic support, infrastructure pathways and commercial potential. In the right region, and under the right conditions, potatoes may offer several possible transition routes, including:

fresh-market potatoes for local or regional sale;
specialty potatoes for farm shops, farmers’ markets, restaurants or community-supported agriculture;
organic or regenerative potato production where markets exist;
chipping or processing potatoes under contract;
small-scale washing, grading and packing;
seed potatoes in suitable regions with strict disease controls;
farm-branded potatoes linked to a wider story of humane transition and land stewardship.

None of this means potatoes are an easy answer. They are not. Potatoes require serious knowledge of soil, seed, disease management, storage, handling, grading, quality specifications and markets. They can also be capital-intensive and unforgiving when planning is weak. But where the conditions are favourable, potatoes could offer some transition-minded farmers a crop with real food-system relevance.

Where potatoes may fit – and where they may not

Many farmers leaving industrial animal agriculture may find mushrooms, leafy greens, greenhouse vegetables or other enclosed systems more immediately compatible with existing barns and infrastructure. That helps explain why those enterprises have often featured prominently in transition stories.

Potatoes are different. They are field crops. A former poultry barn cannot simply become a potato enterprise. However, some livestock and poultry farms already have land, machinery sheds, electricity, water access, loading areas, farm roads, labour experience and a strong work discipline. In selected cases, those assets could help support a move into potatoes or into a diversified vegetable system where potatoes play an anchor role.

The key is realism. Potatoes will not suit every farm, every region or every farmer. But they should not be excluded from the broader transition conversation simply because they require specialist knowledge. That is precisely where the potato sector could help.

The business question must come first

No farm transition will survive on goodwill alone. Any farmer considering potatoes must understand the business case before planting a single acre.

That means asking hard questions:

Is the land suitable for potatoes?
Is irrigation available or necessary?
What rotation crops are possible?
What are the disease risks?
Is certified seed available?
Can the farmer store potatoes safely?
Is there a buyer before planting?
Would a small fresh-market acreage be wiser than processing potatoes?
Is there access to a packer, processor, food hub, co-op or distributor?
Would potatoes work better as part of a diversified vegetable system?

This is where experienced potato people can make a real contribution. They know the difference between an inspiring idea and a workable enterprise. They also know how quickly potatoes can punish poor planning.

A role for potato mentors

One practical opportunity would be to build a small, informal network of potato mentors willing to advise transition-minded farmers.

This would not need to be complicated. Support could include an introductory call, a review of a proposed potato enterprise budget, advice on seed sourcing, introductions to local agronomists or buyers, basic guidance on storage and handling, or a frank warning when a proposed plan appears too risky.

Such mentorship would not replace professional consulting. But it could help farmers ask better questions before making costly decisions.

For The Transfarmation Project, this could add another crop option to the transition conversation. For the potato industry, it would offer a constructive way to participate in a wider food-system debate without becoming ideological or defensive.

Humane farming must include the farmer

The humane farming conversation often focuses, understandably, on animals. But any honest transition model must also include the farmer.

Many farmers in industrial animal systems are not villains. They are people working within highly consolidated systems, often carrying debt and trying to keep family farms alive. Some want out. Some feel trapped. Some may not share every view of animal-welfare organisations, yet still recognise that the current system is not working for their families, their communities or their land.

That is why The Transfarmation Project’s farmer-led approach is important. It recognises that transition must be built with farmers, not imposed on them.

Potato growers understand this. They know risk, weather, markets, debt, family pressure and the emotional weight of farming. If the potato sector becomes involved, the message should not be: “You should grow potatoes.” A better message would be: “Where potatoes make sense, we may be able to help you explore the possibility.”

A possible pilot concept

A modest pilot could link The Transfarmation Project with selected potato-industry advisers to assess whether potatoes are feasible for a small number of transition-minded farms.

Such a pilot might include:

identifying two or three farms with potentially suitable land;
assessing soil, water, climate and market access;
comparing potatoes with other crop options;
preparing first-pass enterprise budgets;
identifying potential buyers before planting;
developing low-risk first-year production plans;
documenting lessons for future farmers.

The goal would not be to promote potatoes blindly. The goal would be to test whether potatoes can be part of a practical transition toolkit in specific regions.

A constructive role for the potato sector

The future of food will be shaped not only by yield, storage, disease control and processing capacity. It will also be shaped by values: animal welfare, climate resilience, biodiversity, farmer wellbeing, rural dignity, nutritional security and consumer trust.

Potatoes have a credible story to tell in that future. They are widely consumed, nutritionally important, versatile, familiar to consumers and adaptable to many farming systems.

For farmers seeking a way out of intensive animal agriculture, potatoes will not always be the right answer. But in some cases, they may be worth serious consideration. And for the potato industry, this conversation offers a chance to show that potatoes are not only a crop of the past and present, but a crop that can help shape a more humane, resilient and farmer-centred food system.

Editor’s note

This article forms part of Potato News Today’s ongoing “Potatoes and Humane Farming” series, which explores the connections between potato production, animal welfare, plant-forward agriculture, sustainability, rural livelihoods and the human stories behind food-system change.

Suggested source list