The suffering car industry makes up about eight or nine percent of the nation's work force and some always predicted it was too big of an industry to ever fail. We all know how that turned out most recently but here's some "food for thought".
The agriculture industry makes up a whopping 29 percent of the total work force and one local farmer says that will never change.
Idaho potatoes are still hot, so hot some states will only purchase potatoes with Idaho's branding.
Idaho, specifically the Snake River Valley, still produces twenty-five percent of the nation's total potato crop.
World-wide, Bingham County produces the most with about 54,000 acres of spuds. Power County comes in second place with 35,000 acres. These are rankings that have not budged since East Idaho took over the top spot back in 1961.
The old saying "Sun up to sun down," is by far not a joke when it comes to farming. The family owned and operated idea is also alive and well this day in age, especially in East Idaho.
Klaren Koompin, Koompin Bros. Farms: "Agriculture is seeing a little bit of that downturn but nothing like the Microns, the AMI's and all that other stuff. We've never been a big boom industry or a big bust industry. We've always been pretty stable because people have to eat."
Tell anyone in the nation where you're from and to this day they associate you with potatoes. It's a reputation eighty years in the making and for a good reason.
Kamren Koompin, Following in Father's Footsteps: "It's something that will probably always be there. There may not be as many people involved in the system itself but it will sustain through the good times and the bad."
Kamren points out that if the dug up vegetable could easily be produced elsewhere we would have some major competition. What makes Idaho the prime place for planting? The Koompin's say it is all about the state's geographical positioning. A location where water and land naturally meet and the weather is benign.
A modernized potato cellar is one that will easily cool off a farmer after a long-day working in the fields. The huge structure maintains the potatoes at a steady 50 degrees so they don't shrivel up before being shipped off to wherever their destination might be.
The trend to consolidate farming land is not really a trend, but an industry standard that's been around for the last two-hundred years. The fact there are interested buyers and that it's not a predictable industry from year to year, no wonder some decide to sell their land.
That is not likely an option for the Koompin family who have planted their empire in the Gem State.
Klaren Koompin, Koompin Bros. Farms: "It's a very good way of life. We've been very lucky, very blessed you know. We've been, what I consider to be very prosperous for where Ken and I started."
Kamren Koompin, Following in Father's Footsteps: "Growing up on the farm was great and just being able to continue that makes it even more special."
Something to look forward to in the near future, healthy french fires! Right now a team of people are working to create a very healthy oil for deep-friers. If that were to be the case, you could actually get a dose of your daily vitamins every time you bite into a french fry.
