Houston-based MountainKing Potato is implementing an aggressive retail program to promote smaller potatoes. The company’s baby potato line includes golds, reds and a medley pack.
“Small potatoes are under-promoted and under-merchandised,” John Pope, vice president of sales and marketing at MountainKing, said in a news release. “We’re working to change that narrative in a big way.”
High-graphic bins to display the bagged baby potatoes use an oven theme to reinforce that nearly half of all potatoes are prepared in an oven, according to the release. Recipes and display-ready sleeves are available for retailers, and materials are customizable for specific store formats and traffic pattens, according to the release.
“The merchandising package makes for a perfect meat department display,” Pope said in the release.
The MountainKing baby potato bags are 1.5 pounds each (8 to 10 servings), and are packed 12 to a carton or 120 to a bin.
MountainKing customer surveys agree with consumer research on the rising popularity of baby potatoes, and customers also like the mesh bags. According to MountainKing:
- 71 percent of customers prefer the mesh bags;
- 65 percent of consumers who purchase small bag of fresh potatoes buy them every two weeks;
- 60 percent of those surveyed purchase small potatoes because they are easy to prepare; and
- 65 percent either roast or bake them.