Super Farm Potato named McCain “Champion Grower”

Super Farms Potato Ltd of Saint-André, N.B., was named the 2015-2016 McCain Champion Potato Grower for Grand Falls at the 42nd annual McCain Growers’ Banquet held in August at Centre E.& P. Sénéchal in Grand Falls, N.B.

Front Row, L-R: André Levesque, Jean-Guy Levesque. Back Row, L-R: Luc Coté, Field Department Manager, Allison McCain, Chairman, McCain Foods Limited, Luc Levesque, Jules Levesque, Christine Wentworth, VP Agriculture NA, Dale McCarthy, VP Integrated Supply Chain NA.

Allison McCain, Chairman of McCain Foods Limited, was on hand at the event along with Dale McCarthy, vice-president Integrated Supply Chain NA, and Christine Wentworth, vice-president Agriculture NA to extend personal congratulations to Super Farms Potato Ltd. and all of the McCain growers.

In his address to the group, McCain said he is “excited about agriculture, and particularly our agriculture.”

According to a press release from McCain foods, Jean-Guy Levesque, attending with sons Jules and Luc and grandson André, was completely surprised when their company was announced as the Champion Grower. They received a trophy, a $1,000 cheque and an all-expense-paid trip for two to a destination of choice. The Levesque family has been contracting with McCain for 43 years, has been in the Top 10 a total of 13 times, but this was their first time winning the Champion Grower title.

The third annual Yield Contest Award winner was Les Fermes Bernard & Gérard Levesque, with a yield of 525 hundredweight per acre. The runner-up was Luc Ouellette & Fils, coming in at 483 hundredweight per acre. This award is given to growers who produce the highest-yielding fields and share best management practices with the grower group.

For the Top 10 awards, potatoes are rated throughout the year on a variety of factors including size, gravity, defect level and colour and awarded points accordingly. At the end of each crop year, the top 10 growers are determined based on their overall scores.

The other growers who qualified for the top 10 roster, in order of final standing were: Les Fermes LP Theriault, GIL Roberge Ltd., Northwest Potato Farms, Gilles Desjardins Co. Ltd., Eagle Farms 2006 Ltd., Les Fermes Lionel & Alyre Poitras, Valley Farms GF, Les Fermes PL Levesque Ltd., and Les Fermes Mario Levesque. Each received a plaque and a $1,000 cheque for their achievements.