Black Gold Farms history

Initially, Certified Seed potatoes were grown followed by a change to table stock potatoes in 1949.

1959 was the first year the Halverson’s grew potatoes for the chip potato industry.

Our name Black Gold was adopted in 1965 when our family entered the registered Angus cattle business. “Black” symbolized both the fertile, truly deep ebony black soil deposited by Ice Age glaciers and the Black Angus hide.

In the 1980’s, Jack’s son Gregg took over the management of the business, expanding into Missouri, exiting the cattle business, and becoming a major supplier for Frito Lay.

Below, is Gregg Halverson, hauling a planter in February of 1986 1,033 miles away to Charleston.

In 1994 the Winamac, Indiana farm was added to supply the late summer and fall demand for chip potatoes.

A state-of-the-art facility was built West of Pearsall in 1998.

Production in Arbyrd, Missouri began in 1999 with a harvest start-up time of early June bridged the harvest schedule between Pearsall and Charleston.

A modern grading facility was built in the Summer of 2000 including on-scale loading and hydro-cooling.

In 2004 Black Gold Farms purchased the very respected and well known Durwood Cooper Farm near the village of Gum Neck, North Carolina south of Columbia.

To fill the very important mid-May through June, pre 4th of July potato chip season production in Live Oak, Florida was put into place in 2006.

To further ingrain ourselves and produce chip potatoes closer to our customers to help with sustainability for East Coast shipping lanes, production in Rhodesdale, Maryland was added in 2009.

In 2014, the torch was passed to the fourth generation of Halversons when Gregg’s son Eric was named chief executive officer.

Located on the eastern shore of North Carolina the George Wood Farm in Camden was acquired in 2015.