By Bob Arnold
It’s almost again heaven for area sweet potato connoisseurs.
The Wesson Lions Club is now making available the best sweet potatoes grown anywhere in the world to folk throughout the area.
The club kicked off it annual sales of the delicious treat late last month with the arrival of a truckload of 400 boxes of Landreth Farms-produced sweet potatoes from the Vardaman area in north central Mississippi -- the "Sweet Potato Capital of the World" – at Co-Lin, where its members picked them up for their customers.
For the tenth consecutive year, they offered them at bargain basement prices to raise funds for the local, state, national and global charities their club helps support.
In addition to individuals, area restaurants look forward to stocking up on the quality sweet potatoes during the Lions Club's fundraising effort.
The club’s goal is to fully distribute them to sweet potato lovers throughout the area by the end of the day of the Wesson Flea Market on Saturday, October 15, when they will be on sale at a Lions Club vendors tent at the annual event.
Along with regular sweet potatoes, a few boxes jumbos may also be available this year. Defying current inflationary pressures, the prices will be at the same level they’ve been for 10 years -- $20 per box, or 50 cents per pound.
Landreth Farms officials say it's the loamy soil – along with timely early rains – in the Vardaman area that make their potato crops sweet and special. Landreth plants sweet potatoes on 750 acres, among Mississippi farmers, who raise sweet potatoes on more than 18,400 acres across the state. The farm sells commercially to national food stores, such as Kroger and Wal-Mart; and canners, like Gerber; and produces a line of pre-wrapped sweet potatoes for microwave cooking.
The annual sweet potato sale is among four major fundraising activities of the Wesson Lions Club. The Club also has an annual pancake breakfast, sells peanuts at Co-Lin football games and collects money on Highway 51 from motorists to support sight charities. It disburses some $10,000 every year to assist deaf and blind persons through the International Lions Club and to support local organizations and causes related to children and youth, veterans, hospice care and other community issues and concerns.
For information and to order sweet potatoes, call 601-643-2466 or 501-643-2002.