The main three at one of the main three seed potato farm families in Whatcom County (l. to r.): Melissa Bedlington-Kleindel, her brother Scott Bedlington, and her husband Nate Kleindel.
Leonard continues active involvement in the now muchexpanded operation owned by his son, Greg. While Oscar Ebe may have been the first seed potato farmer, the Hawley family’s farming roots go back to the turn of the century. • R. T. Hawley built a chicken farm on the hill off Lakeway Drive in Bellingham, across from where Fred Meyer stands today. He also became the first manager of the Farmer’s Co-op in Bellingham. • R. T.’s son, Myron, moved out to what was then known as “the sticks” near Wiser Lake, where his grandson, Roger Hawley, and Roger’s son Mike continue the seed potato business. • Myron first grew commercial potatoes in 1932 and his son, Hugh, converted to seed potatoes around 1960. From the original Ebe farm, the industry grew until at one point about 30 farmers were growing seed potatoes. But, in a story typical of most types of farming, economics forced consolidation. Farms either grew or withered away. Some potato farmers did grow and thrive, so that today four seed producers exist with most of the production in the hands of three third-generation family farmers: Greg Ebe, Scott Bedlington, his sister Melissa Bedlington-Kleindel and cousin Jeff Bedlington, and Roger Hawley. Jeff Bedlington farms on the original family acreage near Berthusen Park with his wife, Diana. Roger Hawley operates Hawley Farms with his wife, Vicki. So the seed of the local industry that notches about $17 million in sales and generates nearly 80 million pounds of spuds a year can be traced to three farming pioneers: • Oscar Ebe, Myron Hawley, and Gordon Bedlington (grandfather of present-day farmers Scott, Melissa, and Jeff.) The 80 million pounds produced locally does not fully tell the story. These potatoes are sold to growers in Africa, South America, and Canada, though most of the production goes to U.S. farmers in California and the Northwest states. Skagit County’s consumer potato growers provide a major customer base for Whatcom’s seed potatoes. Those 80 million pounds of seed turn into about 330 million pounds of French fries, potato chips, and dehydrated potato products. Only 20 percent of potatoes get processed this way. The rest go into fresh-pack potatoes,
The chart shows the percentages of seed potatoes that are designated for different uses when they are sold to commercial growers who stock the market for French fries, potato chips, and sacked potatoes on the consumers’ tables. Greg Ebe, president and CEO at Ebe Farms near Lynden, displays seed spuds in a basket. The seed potatoes get sorted for usage (French fries, chips, fresh pack for dinner, etc.).
WHATCOMBUSINESSALLIANCE.COM | 57