RUPERT, IDAHO — Executives with The Mart Group cut the ribbon Oct. 2 on a $65 million, 100,000-square-foot processing facility in Rupert that is preparing to process a frozen baked potato innovation branded as OH!Tatoes. Julian Critchfield, president and chief executive officer, told Food Business News the facility has production capacity for 10,000 lbs per hour.

“It’s in start-up mode now running tests,” he said. “We anticipate coming online to ship product out by the end of this month.”

OH!Tatoes will initially be sold at Publix, Harris Teeter and Associated Foods outlets and potentially by other retailers as production and distribution grow. A bag of six to eight baked and frozen potatoes will retail for about $8, depending on where they’re purchased, said Mike Larson, chief marketing officer for The Mart Group.

The company has been producing and marketing Russet potatoes since 1980, but management recently began to consider producing a baked and frozen product for US retailers and other channels after success marketing a similar product in Japan and other Asian foodservice markets.

“We have been in that market for over 10 years with only the frozen whole baked potato selling into the foodservices segment,” Critchfield said. “The primary reason for this is that in Japan they do not allow fresh potatoes from outside of Japan to be imported. So, the whole baked potato was developed to address that market.”

He said The Mart Group did sensory testing in the US about a year ago to learn what consumers thought of the new product, which consists of whole Russet potatoes that are fully baked, flash-frozen and packaged in resealable bags.

The Mart Group’s new potato processing plant in Rupert, Idaho, officially opened Oct. 2.

| Photo: The Mart Group

“We knew the Asian markets liked it, but were US consumers going to like it?,” he said. “Before we ever came up with the brand or decided to go to North America, we didn’t want to go out there and find out they didn’t like it.”

People can tell the difference between microwaved and conventionally baked potatoes, he added, plus there are other advantages to a baked and frozen product.

“We’ve found, along with others, that you buy a fresh potato and throw it in the pantry and pull it out later and it’s green and has sprouts coming up,” he said. “So, convenience, waste and taste were the big items there.”

The next step was to increase production from the company’s existing facility in Burley to boost capacity and product development. The baked potatoes can now be coated with seasonings such as rosemary or sea salt, and there are also mixing options within the new plant, Critchfield said, adding that 20,000 square feet remains unoccupied for future lines and products.

“The blending capability allows us to add such external items as peppers and onions to a roasted breakfast potato or diced onions to a potato for a soup mix,” he said. “We do not have the ability right now to do loaded baked potatoes or twice-baked potatoes. Having said that, we do have a co-packing arrangement that would allow us to offer a twice-baked potato or loaded potato under the OH!Tatoes brand.”

The Mart Group has been delivering fresh potatoes to customers across the US for years, Critchfield said, so the company’s longevity and reputation are assets when it comes to introducing innovations.

“One big issue is cost and distribution from Rupert,” he said. “As we’ve built the product and the brand, we take that into account with our pricing. With retailers so far, we’ve hit the right price point with them, and our prior experience has been able to carry over into this launch.”

Stability also has helped recruit employees for the newly opened production plant, Critchfield said, which is in a relatively remote area. He said housing has been a challenge, but so far, the company has staffed about 50% of the 80 new employees required, and they are now being trained.

Southern Idaho’s agribusiness industry produces almost half of the state’s $11.3 billion in annual agricultural receipts, the company said. Other food manufacturers with facilities in the region include Chobani, Clif Bar and McCain Foods, with McCain, J.R. Simplot and Lamb Weston also producing potato products in the area.

While The Mart Group’s grower-owners primarily grow Russet potatoes, Larson said they also produce gold and baby red ones, sugar beets, corn, barley, alfalfa, watermelons and pumpkins. He added the volcanic soils in Southern Idaho, along with warm days, cool nights and low humidity, “are very conducive to growing high-quality potatoes.”

The company plans to eventually distribute OH!Tatoes beyond the US into Canada and Mexico and also market them (and other branded products as they’re developed) in Asia. Critchfield said he will be traveling to Taiwan and Japan in November with the Idaho Trade Commission and Idaho Governor Brad Little “to do just that.”