A marketing expert who was raised in Shelley and has deep roots in the potato industry will be tasked with maintaining Idaho’s reputation for having the world’s top taters. Jamey Higham will become the new president and CEO of the Idaho Potato Commission beginning in early 2022.
As John O’Connell reports for Idaho State Journal, Higham will assume the role from Frank Muir, who led the IPC throughout an 18-year period in which the state’s potato industry doubled farm gate receipts to more than $1 billion, making Idaho potatoes a globally known brand. Muir retired in mid-September.
The IPC — a state agency charged with promoting and protecting the renowned “Grown in Idaho” seal — is funded by an assessment of 12.5 cents per hundred pounds of potatoes raised by Idaho farmers.
“IPC has done a tremendous job of stewarding the brand, and I’m very humbled and excited for this opportunity,” Higham said in a press release. “I started in the potato industry in 1991, and it’s in my blood.” He started his career with Walker Produce in Idaho Falls and then worked for several years in sales with Potandon Produce in Idaho Falls.
