Ambassadors

All the Ambassadors have worked hard since their recruitment in Spring 2010 and they regularly contribute to the following types of media coverage:

• Press and farming trade interviews

• Radio interviews

• Online videos

• TV programmes

• Consumer and show events 

Have you got what it takes to be an Ambassador?

Our current team of Potato Ambassadors will end their contracts at the end of April 2012. We are now looking for new recruits, although the current Ambassadors can re-apply. The term will begin from May 2012 to April 2014. We are looking for new recruits in England and Wales only. 

The role generally only takes a few days a year with media interviews, farm visits, visiting local events, supporting road shows and schools. You may even be asked to feature in a film for one of our projects such as Grow Your Own or Cook Your Own Potatoes, talking about the cycle of growing potatoes. Potato growers can help the industry to promote the benefits of eating potatoes - for health and nutrition and to explain how good they are to be produced in GB (we have a good climate for growing potatoes).

These are the regions in England:

• Central England
• Yorkshire
• East of England
• North East
• South
• North East
• South West
• South East 

and Wales ..

The first thing to do, is to provide your details to Maria Ball, Corporate Affairs Manager at Potato Council. Please email her your name, address, telephone number and email address to: maria.ball@potato.ahdb.org.uk. Please do this by 1 March 2012. Alternatively, if you would like to talk about the role a little more, please call Maria on 024 76 478773.

Maria will then organise a telephone interview with you during the first couple of weeks of March. If you are successful to second stage, you will be visited on-farm by Maria and a Potato Council Board member during March or April. We would also like your ideas about how you could generate local interest about potatoes during the visit.

Candidates will be told shortly after the farm visit if they have been successful or not. We will also provide media training for the new group of Ambassadors towards the end of April 2012.

So, if you would like to apply, please do so without delay...read below about our current team and the sort of activities they have been involved with. Or you can apply by filling in this leaflet. Print it out, fill it in and post in an envelope to Potato Council (the address is on the leaflet).

You can view the Potato Ambassadors profiles below.

Recent coverage:

• Nick Baird featured on Delia online (posted in October 2011), the feature can be found here - this was part of the coverage connected with Potato Week 2011

• Allan Stevenson and Anthony and Lucy Carroll featured in the Great British Food Revival about potatoes featured on BBC1 and BBC2 on 16 March and 24 March respectively in 2011, this is being repeated in November 2011 on BBC2. Gregg Wallace, Master Chef presenter, championed the sector. 

• Matt Spanton has answered some questions about potato farming for popular Women's magazine, 'Woman and Home', this appeared in the February 2011 edition. 

• Tim Briscoe from East Anglia helped Channel 4 with their detailed look at potato farming in the UK for their show, ‘Food: What Goes in your Basket?’ This was aired on 20 October 2010. You can view the programme here

Profiles of Ambassadors:

South West – Reuben Collins
Reuben is the fourth generation of potato growers on his family farm in Cornwall and he produces fresh potatoes for a major supermarket chain as well as his local farm shops. Reuben is so committed to home grown fresh potatoes that he volunteered to have his face printed on his bags of potatoes last year! He has also spent time at community food and farming events promoting his produce and getting people interested in where their food comes from.

South – Nick Baird

Nick Baird grows around 900 acres of potatoes in fields all over the South of England. Much of his crop is based near a large site at Funtington, West Sussex, where he grows a number of varieties and lives with his wife and three young children. Nick’s commitment to quality has led him to diversify into packing the potatoes himself so he can truly demonstrate the field to fork message. He also tries to sell as much of his produce as locally as possible to supermarkets in the south and other farm shops.

South East – Matt Spanton

Kent-based farm manager Matt Spanton was born into farming and studied at agricultural college. He now runs a 3,000 acre farm in Faversham supplying all the major supermarkets with local produce. Brought up on potatoes Matt is keen to show everyone how easy it can be to fit potatoes into busy meal times and believes they can be used in hundreds of different ways.

East of England – Tim Briscoe

Tim farms 500 acres in Norfolk and is so passionate about the quality of his crop that he does all the washing, sorting, packing and storing of his potatoes on his farm. He also tries, where possible, to sell as much of his produce locally and supplies supermarkets and residents with bags of his Buxton Potatoes. He’s even been known to promote his wares locally with a cardboard cut out of himself and homemade potato cakes to hand out!

Central – Andrea Adams
Andrea farms potatoes in heart of England countryside with her husband and two children. She believes potatoes play a really important part of providing her kids with a healthy balanced and nutritious diet. She regularly goes into the local school and talks to them about the farming process and in return, hosts a farm walk to show them how growing potatoes really happens. Andrea and her husband supply a large chip manufacturer and are proud that their potatoes can be transformed into potato products from the field within a few hours!

Wales – Walter Simon

Walter farms 130 acres of potatoes in Pembrokeshire, Wales and supplies supermarkets all over the country. He also grows seed potatoes for other growers to use. Walter has been very active in representing the potato industry over many years and is truly passionate about potatoes. He attends the Pembrokeshire Potato Festival every year, as well as hosting numerous community groups and school visits on his farm to educate the next generation and share his enthusiasm for the crop.

Yorkshire – Ben Sykes

Ben is the third generation of the Sykes family to grow potatoes at their large farm in Tadcaster, Yorkshire. He supplies a large chip manufacturer and has a seed storage business for other farms on site. Ben has hosted open farm days for the local public keen to see what growing is all about, and gives students the opportunity to learn more about farming with guided tours.

North West – Robin Cropper

The Cropper family have grown and sold potatoes for the past seven generations. Robin runs the substantial farm in Ormskirk, Lancashire with his brother, John, producing fresh potatoes for chip shops in nearby Liverpool and Manchester. Most of the 6,000 tonnes they produce each year are consumed within a 30 mile radius of the farm – a fact they are extremely proud of. With three young children of his own, Robin, a single dad, is keen to show everyone just how quick and easy potatoes are to cook with.

North East – Anthony Carroll

The Carroll family have farmed at Cornhill-on-Tweed, Northumbria since the 1930's where they found a passion for growing, cooking and eating unusual varieties of potatoes that offer great taste and quality. Anthony and his wife, Lucy, now grow over 20 different varieties. Their farm was voted Britain’s most beautiful in 2006 and the site is now a LEAF mark demonstration farm, showing environmentally friendly and sustainable farming practices to others.

Scotland – Peter AA Grewar

Peter farms in Perthshire at 'East Ardler' farm. Peter and his family currently grow 1640 acres of potatoes, mainly ware crops for the pre-packed market, but also including 170 acres of organic ware potatoes and 370 acres of seed potatoes. They also grow wheat, spring barley and oil seed rape. Peter is married with two small children and his wife works in the business too. Peter is a Nuffield scholar and very enthusiastic about the industry. Conservation is high on Peter's list and in 2008, East Ardler farm was FWAG accredited. Three of the farming businesses are now registered under the, 'Operation Bumblebee' scheme. Their organic crops are certified through the Scottish Organic Producers Association (SOPA).

For more information contact Maria Ball on 02476 478773 or maria.ball@potato.ahdb.org.uk. Being a Potato Ambassador is one way to support activities, if you are interested in becoming an Ambassador, or would like to talk through what the role involves, please speak to Maria Ball.