b'GROWERSPOTLIGHT Bow Island PotatoesFarming Potatoes is in His BloodJAAP REMIJN grew up on a potato farm in the Netherlands but decided to pursue mechanical engineering after high school. When he immigrated to Canada, the opportunity arose to buy a potato farm in Alberta. Remijn decided it was something he couldnt pass up. It was just something I wanted to do for myself, says Remijn, whose father started farming potatoes in Holland at the age of 19. I guess farming pota-toes was always in my blood.Its obviously something hes good at too. Last November, Remijn was recognized as one of McCain Foods top growers in Alberta for the 2017 crop yearwhich was the first year he began supplying processing potatoes to McCain.Remijn, 38, was living in Alberta when the chance to buy his farmland came up in 2009. He now grows close to 1,000 acres of potatoes, mostly Russet Burbanks and some Ranger Russets, for McCain, Cavendish Farms and Lamb Weston at his 1,500-acre farm near Taber, Alta. Spring wheat, dry beans, corn and sugar beets are also grown as part of the farms potato rotation.Remijn, like many other growers in his province, has benefitted from the recent expansions in the pro-cessing potato industry in Alberta and has doubled his potato acres since 2015.We were growing 500 acres four years ago and now were growing 950 acres, says Remijn. The farm is also adding two more storage bins to keep pace with the increase in potato production. Remijn employs four full-time workers at the farm and bumps his staff to seven at planting and harvest time. He says his parents, Nico and Wilhemia, who are semi-retired from farming and live nearby, also help out.Remijn and his wife, Christina, have four kidsthree girls and boythat range in age from six months to six years old. He says taking care of the kids is a full-time job for Christina but its likelyJaap Remijn and his family grow Russet Burbanks and Ranger Russets near Taber, Alta.shell eventually take over the task of handling the farm paperwork from his parents. There arent very many different ways of growingfield in the fall, but with potatoes theres quite a bit Remijn says he really enjoys potato farminggrain, says Remijn. In my eyes, its pretty simple:more involved. Theres more variety there and you can because of the variety and challenges that come withyou put spring wheat in the ground, you spray it, youreally challenge yourself. MARK HALSALLgrowing the crop. put some water on and then you put a combine to the 68 SPUDSMART.COM FALL 2019'