Hurricane Sandy victims have a healthy meal coming their way thanks to the Wisconsin potato industry. Grower and shippers have teamed up to donate a total of 80,000 pounds of healthy Wisconsin-grown potatoes to the East Coast. Dany Rady with the Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Growers Association said John Hein of Sowinski Farms in Rhinelander came up with the donation idea. Additional growers and shippers stepped up to assist once the initial e-mails went out. “It’s taken a little bit of time and a lot of phone calls to organize, but we’ve been very happy to do it,” said Rady.
The two semi-trucks both hold 20 pallets of potatoes that weigh about 2,000 pounds each. The trucks departed Wisconsin on Monday, and will travel to a warehouse called City Harvest in Long Island City, New York. From there, volunteers from the food rescue organization give out the potatoes to many who are still without power and need help. Since Hurricane Sandy hit the east coast on October 29, City Harvest has donated more than 3 million pounds of food to soup kitchens, food pantries, and churches.
