A P R I L 2 0 1 7 10 POTATO GROWER 2016 Processing Potato Trial Larimore, North Dakota by Dr. Asunta (Susie) Thompson, Potato Breeder, NDSU Northern plains potato growers pro- duce potatoes for the fresh (table- stock), processing, and seed mar- kets. Approximately 60% of pota- toes produced in the northern plains potato production areas of Minnesota and North Dakota are for processing (chips and frozen, including French fries). Russet Burbank continues as the leading cultivar grown, and while the com- mercial industry standard for frozen products, it has several limitations. It requires high levels of inputs including fertilizer and water, it is susceptible to many pests, it is a late-season cultivar, but more importantly it is susceptible to many abiotic stresses, including temperature and moisture. Desirable traits for French fry pro- cessing cultivars include high specif- ic gravity, low sugar accumulation, light fry color, resistance to the sugar end disorder, hollow heart and other defects, and that are envi- ronmentally and economically sus- tainable. The North Dakota State University (NDSU) potato breeding program initiated in 1930 by the North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station, hybridizes parental geno- types, and conducts selection, eval- uation, and cultivar development activities across North Dakota and One of the NDSU research plots at Hoverson Farms. Dakota Russet is a dual-purpose russet selection with attractive tuber type and excellent French fry quality.