Let’s face it. Everyone loves a great potato chip, but in Pennsylvania, the residents take it up a notch or two. Their craving for the salty snack is so compelling that the state’s unsanctioned nickname is the “Potato Chip Capital of the World.” Even more precisely, there is a “beltline in the southern part of the state where potato chips reign supreme,” according to NPR.
Made up principally of Lancaster County, York County, and throughout the Commonwealth. These areas have been highly prosperous in the snack industry, which National Public Radio pointed to the area’s conscientious Pennsylvania Dutch population and its proximity to major east coast cities including Philadelphia, Baltimore, and New York City.
The hub of the potato chip industry
Home to 20+ manufacturing plants, the majority of which are independent companies, Pennsylvania has more chip companies than any state in the nation. To that end, the state has gained a status as the hub of the American potato chip industry, a designation imbedded in the state’s deep agricultural history, its entrepreneurial spirit and the growth of family-owned snack companies. In small towns with humming factories, Pennsylvania’s southeastern countryside is dotted with potato chip makers whose established processes and commitment to quality have lent a hand to shaping the nation’s snack food market.
The history of Pennsylvania’s supremacy in the potato chip marketplace starts with the fertile soil and robust agricultural traditions during the 19th and early 20th centuries, when the state was home to numerous potato farms, that offered a stable source of this critical crop. Farmers throughout the state grew ample crops of potatoes. And in the early 1900s, small groups of people began experiments dealing with different ways to exploit this multipurpose vegetable.
One of those approaches was frying thin potato slices, a technique that swiftly became trendy. This simple yet scrumptious innovation would quickly lay the groundwork for a business that would help put the Keystone State on the potato chip map.
One of Pennsylvania’s Agriculture Department members notes, “a lot of chip companies originated in Pennsylvania”. There were plenty of one-room, mom-and-pop chip companies. Most started their businesses in their own kitchens, growing into factories with the boost in demand and number of sales. Over time, additional entrepreneurs witnessed the possibility of success in the chip market and the volume of companies rose steeply.
The birth of potato chip makers
Good’s potato chips have a lengthy and treasured history as a family-owned snack company recognized for turning out superior potato chips. Founded in 1886 in Adamstown, PA, Good’s constructed a faithful base of customers, particularly in Lancaster County and central Pennsylvania.
In the early 20th century, a small number of ground-breaking individuals in Pennsylvania began making potato chips on a larger scale, marketing them in bags to meet the increasing demand. Among the entrepreneurs was Earl Wise, who started Wise Potato Chips in 1921. Similar to various initial chip makers, he began small, frying leftover potatoes from his deli to prevent waste. The crispy chips became an instant success, and Wise enlarged his operations, ultimately rising to one of the more established snack brands in the northeastern U.S.
Other family brands that became popular in this early period included Utz Quality Foods in Hanover, PA, Herr’s in Nottingham, PA, Martin’s Chips in Thomasville, PA, and Ira Middleswarth & Son, Inc., Middleburg, PA.
Why Pennsylvania?
So, this begs the question, why Pennsylvania?
Several factors had a say in the state growing to be recognized as the heart of the American potato chip industry:
- Access to agriculture: Pennsylvania’s agricultural assets, especially its potato farms, offer a plentiful and steady source of raw materials. More to the point, Pennsylvania’s soil, a bit acidic, merges with a humid climate to produce perfect growing environments for potatoes.
- Geography: Pennsylvania’s key location along the east coast allowed trouble-free delivery to metropolitan regions including New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, DC., helping these potato chip makers enlarge
their markets beyond their home regions. - Entrepreneurial attitude: The growth of family-owned businesses, frequently grounded in established cooking methods handed down over generations, promoted a tradition of quality workmanship.
- Inventive approaches: Pennsylvania potato chip makers incorporated innovations, including Art Ross’ invention of a powered potato chip machine,
that boosted efficiency and helped these small companies build their operations. - A robust appreciation of tradition: True, the snack food industry has grown enormously, yet numerous Pennsylvania-based potato chip companies have stayed devoted to their origins. Companies such as Dieffenbach’s, located in Womelsdorf, PA, Good’s founded in Adamstown, PA, Snyder of Berlin, located
in Berlin, PA, and Bickel’s located in York, PA have remained committed to hand-cooking their chips, using age-old techniques, such as frying in lard or kettle-cooking, giving their chips a fuller, crunchier consistency. This uniformity of
flavor and quality has made these products local gems and have won them a steadfast following.
The Legacy of the Chip in Pennsylvania
This awareness of tradition spreads past simply the cooking process. Family ownership has remained essential to most of these companies’ uniqueness. Even when they developed into larger-scale setups, the principals of hard work, high quality and community commitment have continued.
The knack of many of these Pennsylvania chip producers to stay significant in the highly competitive snack food industry is just an added part of this legacy. Yes, national brands including Frito-Lay dominate a great deal of the U.S. market, but Pennsylvania chip makers have succeeded in maintaining their niche, especially in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions. By remaining loyal to their roots – concentrating on quality and unique flavors- several of these chip makers have grown nationwide while not losing their regional charm.
In addition to these factors, Pennsylvania is also recognized for its prominent scientific resources that investigate both the harvesting of potatoes and the production of potato chips. Penn State University has been pressing forward with potato research and testing for many years. Not only is the university renowned for its crossbreeding programs and genetic examination of potatoes, but it is also applauded for researching approaches for making potato chips as well. One of the methods in which the researchers evaluate the potatoes is by evaluating their appearance and color.
Four potatoes are fried simultaneously but for varying periods.
The future of the chip industry in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania persists in playing a huge part in the potato chip industry, with a combination of established family-owned businesses and the latest snack food producers. True, some of the smaller companies encounter challenges owing to a boost in competition and ever-changing consumer inclinations, but many have introduced new flavors, swelled product lines, offered healthier snack selections and boosted their impact on the market via online sales.
One final observation: The state’s legacy in the potato chip industry reaches beyond the chip market. The state is often acknowledged as a leader in the production of some of America’s most well-liked snack traditions, such as pretzels, candy, ice cream and, of course, chocolate.
