Food Safety
Safety, including Food Safety, is a Masser Core Value and the cornerstone of the Sterman Masser Corporate Responsibility platform. Our best practices to insure that the potatoes we bring to market are safe for consumers begin with our soils and seeds and extend across the entire supply chain to the final product sold in retail outlets or in restaurants.
- Sterman Masser has adopted and committed to the implementation of the food safety standards promulgated by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI)
- 100% of Sterman Masser owned and/or managed production acreage is SQF Ed. 7.2 Level 3 certified for voluntary Good Agricultural Practices programs that are regularly audited by independent, third-party auditors for compliance.
- Our packing facilities are also certified to the SQF Ed. 7.2 Level 3 standard. First certified in 2008, Masser was the first potato packing facility in the United States to achieve this certification, and has been recertified every year since. SQF is a voluntary audit-based program conducted through the Food Marketing Institute (FMI). The certification assures consumers that food has been produced, processed, prepared, and handled according to the highest possible standards, including implementation of Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) principles.
- Masser Potato Farms is also certified to the USDA National Organic Program (NOP) standard to handle Organic products.
Traceability
In addition to prevention-based food safety initiatives, all product packed by Masser Potato Farms can be rapidly and fully traced back to the lot, field, shed, and pack date. Sterman Masser is committed to the implementation of the industry-wide Produce Traceability Initiative (PTI) standard and is currently capable of assigning and encoding 14-digit GTIN numbers in GS1-128 barcodes at the case and pallet level.
Corporate Responsibility
Our Corporate Responsibility initiatives are a natural extension of our vision, mission and values and are an integral part of our business strategies and operating practices. We are committed to growing and bringing to market safe, high quality, nutritious, convenient, and delicious food in a sustainable, responsible way while strengthening and supporting our communities. It is this purpose-driven approach that has allowed Masser Potato Farms to thrive as an independent, family-owned, agriculturally based businesses for multiple generations. Learn more about our comprehensive, integrated approach to Product, Planet, and People.
Innovation that Delights & Delivers
New products that deliver convenience, variety, and flavor
Consumers tell us they are in a "potato rut" and would serve potatoes more often if they knew different ways to prepare them. They also want to get dinner on the table in 30 minutes or less, and aren't sure how potatoes can fit into that routine. By re-imagining and re-inventing how potatoes are perceived, prepared, and served we can keep potatoes on the minds, shopping lists, and tables of consumers more often.
Our new products, such as Side Delights® Steamables™, Bakeables™ and Grillables™ and Roastables™, address the need to make potatoes more convenient for today's busy consumer and have captured leading shares in their segments.
Penn's Own® Potatoes, grown exclusively in the rich, fertile soils of the Pennsylvania valley regions, are creamy white and buttery golden potatoes with a distinctively delicious taste all their own. Because only qualified varieties grown in Pennsylvania can carry the Penn's Own brand name, you can be confident that the cooking and eating experience will be consistently delicious. Enjoy them in your favorite Pennsylvania Dutch recipes for authentic, home-grown flavor. Penn's Own is sold exclusively by Sterman Masser, Inc. and other members of Pennsylvania Co-Operative Potato Growers, Inc. and are available seasonally at grocery stores in Pennsylvania and the surrounding region.
Our sales, marketing and product development teams have extensive experience working with each individual customer to satisfy their end-user needs, including development of customized product specifications, packaging structures/forms, and assistance in the application of retailer Private Label or "Own Brand" design architecture in a manner consistent with category packaging best practices.
In addition, at Masser Potato Farms, we know that increased potato variety equals increased consumption, so we continuously work with agronomists and other resources to identify and bring to market proprietary seed varieties that will enhance your eating experience and help get potatoes served with (at least) one more meal per week.
New processes that create value from beginning to end
The culture of innovation at Masser Potato Farms applies to process improvements, as well as new products. Our supply chain resources, including our Fresh Solutions Network partners, our own truck fleet, our direct access to rail, and our extensive experience with vendor managed inventory and on-line ordering systems allow us tremendous flexibility and creativity in working with our customers to help solve their supply chain challenges.
Category Management Expertise
As a Fresh Solutions Network Partner, Masser Potato Farms has access to the latest and most comprehensive set of resources, tools and expertise in the industry to help drive shopper satisfaction and grow category sales and profit.
We integrate retail scan data, loyalty card data, proprietary consumer research, and secondary consumer and industry resources to understand not just "what," but also "why," and perhaps most importantly, "what's next?"
We take a total category perspective and provide recommendations that encompass assortment, merchandising, pricing, promotion, packaging, and communication. We work in collaboration with you to understand your shoppers, your objectives, and your operational challenges and/or advantages. We listen. We brainstorm with you. We test and learn together.
As your potato category advisor, we work with you to move from data to insight to action to impact and help drive superior category performance.
Marketing Programs
Our job doesn't stop with just getting the product to the shelf...we help you sell it through. We work with you to bring consumers to your stores, to the produce department, and to the potato display ready to buy.
Our innovative, pre-packed promotional displays generate over 50% volume lift by stimulating trial and bringing new or lapsed users to the category. Even better, our product performance results in consumer satisfaction and creates loyal, repeat purchasers.
We help you execute retail merchandising best practices and provide point of sale materials and other tools to make it easier for your customers to shop the category.
To keep potatoes "top of mind" and "top of list" we engage shoppers before they reach the store with our brand-specific websites, Facebook pages and more. We also support your advertising and promotional vehicles by providing camera-ready artwork, ad slicks, recipes, and demos.
Working together, we'll craft customized, comprehensive marketing programs that will create awareness, stimulate trial, drive repeat, and ignite your category sales.
From Our Family to Yours for 8 Generations
1754
The Masser family commitment to agriculture in central Pennsylvania began in 1754 when Mathias Masser and his wife, Barbara, immigrated from Wurtenburg, Germany to Berks County, Pennsylvania. In 1800, their son Johannes Masser moved to western Schuylkill County and began growing fruits and vegetables, primarily potatoes. The next 4 generations of Massers continued to grow potatoes on the family farm, which were sold directly from the farm to residents of neighboring coal mining towns.
1959
In 1959, Sterman Masser, Johannes' great, great, great grandson, took a 5-year lease on 100 acres of land from his uncle, Ralph Masser. This land was located at the current Sacramento location of Masser Potato Farms. In 1964, he purchased the Sacramento property from his uncle and continued to grow table stock potatoes, packing them for local supermarkets on a seasonal basis. In 1968, he built the first potato packing shed on the farm and, due to customer demand, started packing potatoes year round.
1970
In 1970, Sterman and his wife, Geri, formed Sterman Masser, Inc. to farm and distribute quality potatoes. In 1976, their son, Keith, joined the company. Sterman served as President and CEO until 1980, when Keith became President. Sterman remained as CEO until he retired from the farming business in 1984, and Keith was named CEO and President. Keith's wife, Helen, also joined the company as Chief Financial Officer. The Masser potato farming business continued to grow, with the company now farming 625 acres and shipping 7 million pounds of potatoes annually.
1999
In 1999, Keith and Helen's son, David, joined the potato farming business as Vice President of Sales and Marketing. He was named the president of the company in 2008. In 2009, daughter Julie joined the company as Vice President of Administration.
2013
In 2013, Sterman Masser Inc. purchased a 113,480 square foot facility in Halifax, PA to support their continued growth. This new facility will allow them to move receiving, storage, washing and packing operations all under one roof, increases climate controlled storage capacity and provides expanded space for clean room operations in support of their fast-growing convenience product line.
TODAY
Today, led by David Masser and Julie Masser Ballay, Sterman Masser, Inc., employs approximately 300 people in agricultural, packaging, logistics, sales, and customer service positions. The farming operations have expanded to a total of 4,600 acres, with potatoes, cash grain and hay being produced. The potato packaging and warehouse operations pack and distribute over 250 million pounds of potatoes each year.
