WYOMISSING, Pa. – In the parking lot of a closed Berkshire Mall in Wyomissing, cars lined up for an a-peel-ing offer.
Tulpehocken Township-based Dieffenbach’s Potato Chips recently got its hands on 40,000 pounds of Grade-A russet potatoes left behind by the hurting restaurant industry, and the company didn’t want to see them go to waste.
Chad Blimline | 69 News
Dieffenbach’s gave away thousands of boxes filled to the brim with 20 pounds of spuds
“You can just do so much with the potato. I love ’em,” said Terese Rippond from Laureldale, who wasn’t going home with a small-fry amount. “I have a list for my neighbors, and hopefully I can get to them as well.”
Chad Blimline | 69 News
She was part of a line of traffic that wrapped around the mall, spilling out onto surrounding roads, including the bypass.
Distribution started around 10:30 a.m. By 12:30 p.m., every last potato was gone.
“When we got here at 7 a.m., there was people who were already here,” said Dwight Zimmerman, Dieffenbach’s vice president of sales and marketing. “It’s just an unbelievable response.”
Chad Blimline | 69 News
Larger, 50-pound boxes of potatoes went to food pantries.
“We’re all about saving potatoes and giving back to the community,” said Zimmerman.
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