The 2021 Portage potato giveaway came and went earlier this month, and despite a weather scare, Portagers left with bundles of vegetables.

Spruce Drive Farms owner Mark Peters says rain was expected during the giveaway, but luckily, it stayed away, and they were able to hand out lots of potatoes to those looking to stock up. He goes into detail on the number of potatoes available this year, as well as how they managed to get their hands on some extra ones.

"I brought around 50,000 pounds of potatoes. It was a last-minute thing, but we had a Hutterite colony, the Pine Creek Colony," explains Peters. "They heard about it and stepped in. They had some extra potatoes that they went out and dug and they brought another 40,000 pounds."

He adds they gave away around 60,000 pounds of potatoes at the Prairie Alliance Church and Westpark School parking lot this year, and they plan on giving away the extras too. He explains they have bulk bags that will carry around 2,000 pounds, and they will give these filled bags to companies such as Principle Supply, and Food Rescue Winnipeg, who will dole out the remaining spuds to communities and families who need them.

"I'm just blown away by the willingness of people just wanting to be a part of it," says Peters. "It's great that we have so many places and businesses meet the needs of the community and people here."

He adds while they weren't able to keep track of the attendance, Peters recalls seeing hundreds of people coming and going with bags full of potatoes.