March 2020 - 9

Dominic LaJoie is currently the National Potato Council's vice president of environmental affairs. Here, he speaks during the NPC's
annual meeting, which took place in Las Vegas on Jan. 16. LaJoie has served on the NPC's executive committee for several years and is
in line to be the next president. Photo: Zeke Jennings
N
ormand LaJoie was thrust into
manhood at age 17 when his
father, Gilbert, died suddenly
in 1955. Normand and his mother,
Marthe, were left to run their Maine
family farm on their own, and they had
to struggle through the downtrodden
years of the 1960s.
Today, LaJoie Growers LLC is a
1,500-acre, four-partner farm run by
descendants of Gilbert and Normand.
Their legacies, and their struggles,
are front-of-mind in everything the
partners do. The partners include
Normand's two sons Gil and Dominic,
as well as Jay, who is Gil's son, and
cousin Lucas LaJoie. Sky LaJoie, son of
Gil and brother of Jay, is another family
member part of the operation and is in
line to become a fifth partner.
Normand expanded the farming
operation to include trucking. Dominic
" We all do marketing, we all search for new
leads, we just focus on what we do best to keep
the operation as efficient as possible. "
- Dominic LaJoie, LaJoie Growers LLC
LaJoie actually worked as an owneroperator
of a long-haul truck for eight
years before returning to the family farm.
" During the rough years and
struggles, I would complain that we're
not making money, " Dominic recalled.
" He would say, 'I'd rather stay poor and
farm than quit farming.'
" We're really focused on protecting
(Normand's) accomplishments and our
grandfather's accomplishments. They
came through rough times in history,
when farming was at an all-time low back
in the '60s. They really worked hard. "
Having multiple partners has allowed
Dominic and Jay to get involved with
the Maine Potato Board, Potatoes USA
and the National Potato Council, which
they've done with gusto. Dominic
currently serves as the NPC's First Vice
President of Environmental Affairs and
is line to become its next president in
2021. Jay has served for several years on
Potatoes USA's board.
Spudman * March 2020
9

March 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of March 2020

March 2020 - 1
March 2020 - 2
March 2020 - 3
March 2020 - 4
March 2020 - 5
March 2020 - 6
March 2020 - 7
March 2020 - 8
March 2020 - 9
March 2020 - 10
March 2020 - 11
March 2020 - 12
March 2020 - 13
March 2020 - 14
March 2020 - 15
March 2020 - 16
March 2020 - 17
March 2020 - 18
March 2020 - 19
March 2020 - 20
March 2020 - 21
March 2020 - 22
March 2020 - 23
March 2020 - 24
March 2020 - 25
March 2020 - 26
March 2020 - 27
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March 2020 - 29
March 2020 - 30
March 2020 - 31
March 2020 - 32
March 2020 - 33
March 2020 - 34
March 2020 - 35
March 2020 - 36
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-potato-expo-2025-digital-guide
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/january-2025
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/november-december-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/september-october-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/july-august-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/may-june-2024
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https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/march-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/february-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-january-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-november-december-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-september-october-2023
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https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-february-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-january-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-november-december-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/spudman-september-october-2022
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https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/april-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/march-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/february-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/january-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/november-december-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/september-october-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/july-august-2021
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https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/march-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/february-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/january-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/november-december-2020
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https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/january-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/november-december-2019
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https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/april-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/march-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/february-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/basf-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/SPUD/january-2019
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