Today I visited Friehe Farms in Moses Lake, WA on assignment for Bloomberg News. Farmers in Washington are facing a surplus of one billion pounds of potatoes due to restaurant and school closures amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Washington Potato Commission.
Farmer Heath Gimmestad surveys a recently planted potato field at Friehe Farms in Moses Lake, Washington, U.S., on Thursday, Apr. 30, 2020. Farmers in the state are facing a surplus of one billion pounds of potatoes due to restaurant and school closures amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Washington Potato Commission. Photographer: David Ryder/BloombergFarmer Heath Gimmestad poses for a portrait in a storage facility holding Russet Burbank potatoes at Friehe Farms in Moses Lake, Washington, U.S., on Thursday, Apr. 30, 2020. Farmers in the state are facing a surplus of one billion pounds of potatoes due to restaurant and school closures amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Washington Potato Commission. Photographer: David Ryder/BloombergA farmer holds a seed piece from a Clearwater Russet potato in a recently planted potato field at Friehe Farms in Moses Lake, Washington, U.S., on Thursday, Apr. 30, 2020. Farmers in the state are facing a surplus of one billion pounds of potatoes due to restaurant and school closures amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Washington Potato Commission. Photographer: David Ryder/BloombergRusset Burbank potatoes are seen in machinery at Friehe Farms in Moses Lake, Washington, U.S., on Thursday, Apr. 30, 2020. Farmers in the state are facing a surplus of one billion pounds of potatoes due to restaurant and school closures amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Washington Potato Commission. Photographer: David Ryder/BloombergRusset Burbank potatoes are seen in a storage facility at Friehe Farms in Moses Lake, Washington, U.S., on Thursday, Apr. 30, 2020. Farmers in the state are facing a surplus of one billion pounds of potatoes due to restaurant and school closures amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Washington Potato Commission. Photographer: David Ryder/BloombergRusset Burbank potatoes are seen in a storage facility at Friehe Farms in Moses Lake, Washington, U.S., on Thursday, Apr. 30, 2020. Farmers in the state are facing a surplus of one billion pounds of potatoes due to restaurant and school closures amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Washington Potato Commission. Photographer: David Ryder/BloombergFarmer Heath Gimmestad walks through a recently planted potato field at Friehe Farms in Moses Lake, Washington, U.S., on Thursday, Apr. 30, 2020. Farmers in the state are facing a surplus of one billion pounds of potatoes due to restaurant and school closures amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Washington Potato Commission. Photographer: David Ryder/Bloomberg
