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State Lawmaker Wants to Rid PA of Potato Packaging Weight Restrictions

A state lawmaker is calling potato packaging rules in Pennsylvania absurd.

Republican Senator Dave Argall of Schuylkill County is making an effort to re-work them.

Potato packages sold in Pennsylvania can be 3 pounds, 5 pounds, or 10 pounds — and several other weight categories.

But it’s the prohibition of 8-pound bags that bothers potato growers in the commonwealth.

Argall says he wants to remove the weight restrictions.

"So if they want to sell a 5-pound bag or a 10-pound bag or an 8-pound bag, I think they should be able to do that without some kind of crazy state law restricting them," he said.

The potato farmers that prompted the legislation say 8-pound bags are selling much better than 10-pound bags, and they’re not able to reap such profits in Pennsylvania.

Neighboring states, like New York and Maryland, allow such bags.

Potato farms in the commonwealth that want to sell 8-pound bags in other states can do so, but growers say the product takes up extra warehouse space that could be better used for something they can sell in Pennsylvania.