The longtime leader of the North Carolina Sweet Potato Commission (NCSPC), Sue Johnson-Langdon, is retiring.
For more than 25 years, Johnson-Langdon has been closely involved with the agricultural production and marketing of sweet potatoes. Beginning in 1989, she served on the commission’s board of directors in the office of secretary. She was hired as the executive director in 1995 and has spearheaded the strategic programs, issues and policies of the NCSPC into prominence both domestically and internationally.
Johnson-Langdon has aided North Carolina’s annual sweet potato sales from $41.6 million to approximately $300 million. In 1995, North Carolina represented 38 percent of the U.S. sweet potato market, and todayit represents nearly 50 percent of all sweet potatoes grown in the nation.
Johnson‐Langdon has played a major role in establishing a continuously growing export market for sweet potatoes that is recognized in 17 foreign countries that includes the U.K. and Europe. North Carolina also has become the leader in sweet potato research technology, according to the commission.
The commission’s board of directors will be leading the succession and transition process over the next few years. A precise timeline was not given.
