The foot-high ridges look like they were formed by dragging a giant comb through the field’s sandy soil. The symmetrical undulations, stretching nearly as far as the eye can see, stand out in stark contrast to the tabletop flatness of nearby corn, soybean and sunflower fields.

On this warm October day, the enormous harvester crawls slowly through the field, steel probing six inches into the ridges to extricate the starchy treasure nestled within. Out of the ground and up the wide conveyor they roll, a reddish-brown parade quickly filling the large truck heeling obediently at the harvester’s side.

It’s potato harvest at Neumiller Farms.

A family corporation headquartered in Savanna, Illinois, Neumiller Farms grows about 4,300 acres of potatoes on irrigated land in Carroll, JoDaviess, Whiteside, Rock Island and Mason counties. According to Tom Neumiller, president of the corporation, Neumiller Farms also produced approximately 1,300 acres of sweet corn, 1,000 acres of soybeans and 200 acres of corn this year. Depending on market conditions and production contracts, the operation sometimes also raises peas and seed corn, he adds.

Other members of the family corporation include Tom’s wife Wallene who manages the office operations; brother Ron who manages production at the business’ Erie farm; sister Carrie who oversees the family’s home farm in Wisconsin; mother Lois and sisters Lorie and Debbie.

The family’s late patriarch, Fred Neumiller, built a vegetable operation in Wisconsin that included potatoes. "Dad was very willing to try new things," Neumiller recalls. "He even went to Alabama to have people grow potatoes for our customers."

That spirit has carried through to the next generation, as well. Tom traveled to northwest Illinois on business in the early 1970s. He recognized the potential of some of the area’s more sandy irrigated soils, and when he returned home to Wisconsin he excitedly told his father the family should explore growing potatoes in that part of Illinois.

Shortly after in 1974, the Neumillers purchased land near Hanover in JoDaviess County and began production in Illinois. Five years later, they bought land in Carroll County and moved the headquarters to Savanna. They began raising potatoes in Rock Island County in 1993, in Whiteside County in 1996 and in a joint venture in Mason County with the P.D. Sproule Company in 1998.

By whatever name – potatoes, spuds, taters – Americans have a love and voracious appetite for the tasty tuber. It is very likely that you have consumed a potato grown by Neumiller Farms because they supply the versatile vegetable to a number of the nation’s leading food companies. These include chip giant Frito Lay; McCains (formerly Ore-Ida), the world’s largest producer of french fries, according to Neumiller; and Goliath soup purveyor Campbell Soup.

They also supply to Illinois-based chipmakers Vitner’s Potato Chips and Kitchen Cooked Potato Chips, as well as to Seneca Foods and several manufacturers of potato salad and mashed potatoes.

Nearly all of the production is done under contract, Neumiller reports, with each company requiring different varieties, as well as varying production, storage and delivery specifications. Neumiller Farms produces about five varieties of potatoes. Some of the companies require the potatoes to be washed prior to delivery, and some want the potatoes graded by size, Neumiller explains.

In addition to their own production, Neumiller Farms also acts as a broker for other potato producers’ crop, particularly for the companies with which the Neumillers are already doing business.

Planting of the potato crop begins around the last week of March or first week of April, according to Ron Neumiller. The plants emerge from the planted "eyes" in three to four weeks. They are then cultivated and side dressed with fertilizer twice.

From the time the plants emerge, the Neumillers use an integrated pest management program to decide if, when, what and how much to spray to ward off disease, Ron explains. The later-maturing varieties may require 10 to 12 applications.

The Neumillers’ crop consultant also performs weekly tissue analysis to ensure proper nutrient levels. The crop is irrigated as needed, Ron continues.

While french fry manufacturers want large, long potatoes, chip manufacturers require smaller, round potatoes. After defoliating the plants, the Neumillers begin harvesting the chip potatoes in July. Since harvest doesn’t begin until mid-September for most of the other varieties, defoliating those plants usually isn’t necessary.

Yield on the larger, later-maturing varieties is in the neighborhood of 300 hundredweight bags per acre (or 30,000 pounds per acre), according to Ron. The large red potatoes used primarily in soup and potato salad can yield up to 50,000 pounds per acre, he adds.

The Neumillers can harvest about 75 acres in a day, according to Ron. "For every ton of potatoes harvested, we move 32 tons of dirt in the process," Ron reports.

Following the fall harvest, the ground is tilled and rye is planted as a cover crop, both for nutrient value and erosion control of the lighter soil.

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