Welcome to Potato News Today! I am Lukie Pieterse, the editor and publisher of this site. I’m truly happy to have you visiting, and I hope you will find the content on the site valuable and informative. My goal is – and will always be – to bring you the latest and most relevant potato news from around the world as soon as it becomes available to me.
I have a deep passion for the potato industry, having spent the better part of 36 years of my professional career working in the field in some capacity or other. I co-owned and operated a 2,500-acre farming operation in South Africa during the 1980’s and early 1990’s, where I grew drip-irrigated potatoes for some of the major processing companies such as McCain Foods, Frito-Lay, and Heinz.
In 1996, I made the decision to move my family to Canada, so that my two young children would have the privilege to grow up in this wonderful country. Although I will never regret the decision I made back then, I must admit that I still miss my potato operation to this day…
After immigrating to Canada, I started a potato consulting business and was over the years fortunate to be involved in various international projects as a potato consultant in North America, Europe, and South America, including the International Potato Center (CIP) in Peru. I also ventured into the world of potato publications and contributed several technical articles for potato print publications as freelance writer, columnist and editorial advisor, and served as editor for 5 editions of the World Catalogue of Potato Varieties.
In 1996, I launched the first online news portal devoted to potatoes at the time, and since then I have been publishing potato-related information on a number of websites and in print magazines as well. Potato News Today is the latest iteration of my potato news journey, launching in 2014. The site’s database now contains more than 11,000 news stories posted online since then.
If you might have any news or information related to your potato operation, your company, or your organization, please feel free to reach out to me? I will be happy to review it for publication on Potato News Today, and also spread the word on its affiliated social media channels Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. Our reach extends to thousands of potato professionals worldwide, many of whom visit here daily – or at least very often.
For companies, I offer the opportunity to promote their products and services to our visitors. Please take a look at this page for more information, and feel free to get in touch with me for further details.
Thanks again for visiting here, and kind wishes from the east coast of Canada!
Lukie
LinkedIn
lukie@potatonewstoday.com
