Potato Days celebration in Meridian grows even bigger

By Sean Ellis

Idaho Farm Bureau Federation

MERIDIAN – The organizers of last year’s inaugural Potato Days event in Meridian had no idea how many people would show up.

They were hoping between 1,000 and 3,000 people would attend the new event, which was created to celebrate Idaho’s most famous product in the state’s most urban setting.

But the event ended up drawing an estimated 12,000 people and organizers quickly realized they were on to something special. Apparently, even the state’s city folk have a love for Idaho potatoes.

This year’s Potato Days event is expected to draw around 25,000 people. The event’s stated goal of becoming the largest public celebration of the potato in Idaho may be achieved during its second year.

It will take place Sept. 20 -22 at Kleiner Memorial Park, just across from The Village in Meridian.

“It’s the same event as last year, just bigger,” said Thomas Watson, director of Idaho Business Alliance, which is organizing Potato Days.

He said the main purpose of the event is to celebrate Idaho’s most famous commodity in the state’s largest urban setting.

Idaho leads the nation in total potato production and the state’s farmers produce about 14 billion pounds of spuds each year.

Potato production and processing bring in billions of dollars to the state’s economy.

Watson said organizers were surprised to discover there was no event in the Boise area celebrating potatoes.

In some rural parts of Idaho, the potato is openly celebrated and honored. Watson said Potato Days organizers felt the spud should also be recognized and celebrated by urbanites.

“It was a missing thing that we believed should be in the Meridian-Boise area,” Watson said.

Apparently, urbanites feel the same way.

Shortly after Potato Days began last year, thousands of people began flowing into Kleiner Park, stunning organizers.

“Everybody on our team was shocked at the turnout,” Watson said. “We were mouth-wide-open shocked.”

Potato Days is an unabashed celebration of the humble Idaho potato.

It includes dozens of potato-themed games such as potato sack races, potato limbo, potato darts and potato trick shots, potato dishes, and the free prizes awarded for playing the games are all potato-oriented.

Twice as many free toys will be given away at this year’s event.

It includes a potato sidewalk chalk art contest by dozens of local artists, a French-fry competition, live bands, carnival games, a vendor area, bubble garden and bouncy houses.

Everything about the celebration is potato-themed.

This year, a piano dressed up as a potato will be towed to the center of the park and anyone can play on it.

A brand-new Ford F-250 truck will be raffled off at Potato Days this year. Tickets for that raffle will go on sale beginning Aug. 22 and will also be sold during the day of the event.

“Someone is going to drive it off the lot,” Watson said.

All proceeds from the raffle will go to the Idaho Playground Project, which builds playgrounds at schools around the state where funding is not available.

There were 60 vendors at last year’s Potato Days event but there are already 300 so far this year.

There will be 40 food trucks and each one has to have at least one potato-themed item on its menu.

The event is free and is designed to be family friendly.

“I have kids and parents are always looking for a fun, annual tradition for the family to look forward to,” Watson said.

“We want to build something that kids and their parents can look forward to every year.”

“We have been reached out to by dozens of families and business owners that are happy that Potato Days is being celebrated near The Village and is an event they can come back to every year,” he added. “I think we’ve created a new family tradition for Idahoans.”

Idaho spud farmers are happy to hear that the urban part of the state is celebrating the potato.

“What a wonderful event. As a potato grower, I am very happy to hear that the humble spud is being honored and celebrated in Idaho’s largest urban area,” said Idaho Farm Bureau Federation President Bryan Searle, who farms in East Idaho. “The fact that it is a family friendly event makes it even more special.”

The event takes place from 5 p.m. to dark on Friday, Sept. 20, and from sunup to sundown on Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 21 and 22.

For more information about Potato Days, call Watson at (208) 513-4419.