Kettle Chips, the early years
25 years ago the Kettle Chip was born.
As their success grows, they are now moving out of Oregon.
I have gotten very little or many acknowledgement of my early work with the company.
In 1981 bringing a single dry roaster to Salem, as the first production employee, and one of the founders, I have had many frustrations with the founder Cameron Healy's (Nirbhoa Khalsa)story.
a letter written to Jim Green, Company Spokesperson 2/07
Hello, 25 years ago I was asked to make a potato chip for Kettle Foods, as a founding member of the company I feel that the company has shown me nothing but lack of respect.
Back then we would cook potatoes on top of peanuts for snacks, our founder Cameron, after a vacation in Hawaii, one of many, asked me if I could make a potato chip product, I did, by myself in the peanut roasting fryer, I came up with the recipe, like other recipes I developed: nuts, nut mixes, trail mixes, nut butters, what ever was needed, I feel I did my best for the company. It was a time on constant growth, non-stop, learning as needed to set the foundation for future success. Hiring many of the key people for the company, believing in the future, I was always positive about our future.
At first I set up an evening crew to product chips, one that I supervised, after our peanut production in the morning, we set aside evenings for potato chips, I modified our vacuum sealer to seal 6 bags at a time,(we turned off the vacuum) I think we produced 20 cases the first night, Cameron did not package the first bag as stated. He did show up for a photo shoot.
On a leave of absence in 1983 to visit my ailing mother-in-law back east, I was able to visit potato chip plants, one in Ohio that Michael Season's out of Chicago asked me to visit, they shared with me the right fryer and set-up, as well as slicer and draining info, and packaging, even were to get the potato rack. Although we also used filbert racks at first.
Other information came from old-timers, folks that had made chips like ours years before. Al food has been done before, as a chef I know this.
I shared this knowledge with our company and worked with local engineers to set-up the a ladger plant, this lead to a very strong foundation for the company's success 1984-1988.
I was asked by you (Jim Green), my foreman’s David Eyers and Randy Cleays years later, "why did you leave", because I was asked to.
This was not right after all the hard work to set the foundation that has lead to your, Cameron's' and the company's success, that's not believing in People, if the person that developed the recipe can not be acknowledged. That’s Shameful. By the way, it's not the same recipe. We used cold-pressed Safflower oil then and local Willamette potatoes.
I also picked the potato that I enjoyed off the shelves, then visited with the local farmer, Tony Amstad from Sherwood, learned from him about caramelizing the sugars, how to store as well. The company states having selected the potato after testing 200varieties, it says it on the bag, I feel that’s not true.
I was recycling our oil from day one, food scraps to the local pig farmer, bartering with for juice for employers and hot soaks up in the mountains for them, too.
I support your green efforts, always have.
I was able to have a vision, the Green Onion and Yogurt, New Cheddar were developed by me though the Baltimore Spice Company, Funnoodles (local fried noodle product) were able to create a base from my work.
I share my vision with Cameron, Smaller bags, Tortilla Chips, always wanted to do the ridged chip, one without pepper.
My vision for favors is not the same now, but why give you that. The New Seasons profile of Cameron say he "Made" the chip, not sure about that comment, either. Not once did the man work with me on the recipe.
The little guy in your history is me, you have created a myth, reads to me like a rags to riches story, the broken van, driving products up and down I-5, I never saw a broken down van, even in my Golden Temple Bakery days 1978-80, when Brian Miller would pickup roasted nuts in a semi-truck.
I also enjoy the pictures of the softball team I put together on the website.
The best to you for your green efforts, your history is not accurate.
I would have enjoyed growing with the company, promises made but not keep.
Michael Slocum
ps, please do not have your hired hands contact me.
As their success grows, they are now moving out of Oregon.
I have gotten very little or many acknowledgement of my early work with the company.
In 1981 bringing a single dry roaster to Salem, as the first production employee, and one of the founders, I have had many frustrations with the founder Cameron Healy's (Nirbhoa Khalsa)story.
a letter written to Jim Green, Company Spokesperson 2/07
Hello, 25 years ago I was asked to make a potato chip for Kettle Foods, as a founding member of the company I feel that the company has shown me nothing but lack of respect.
Back then we would cook potatoes on top of peanuts for snacks, our founder Cameron, after a vacation in Hawaii, one of many, asked me if I could make a potato chip product, I did, by myself in the peanut roasting fryer, I came up with the recipe, like other recipes I developed: nuts, nut mixes, trail mixes, nut butters, what ever was needed, I feel I did my best for the company. It was a time on constant growth, non-stop, learning as needed to set the foundation for future success. Hiring many of the key people for the company, believing in the future, I was always positive about our future.
At first I set up an evening crew to product chips, one that I supervised, after our peanut production in the morning, we set aside evenings for potato chips, I modified our vacuum sealer to seal 6 bags at a time,(we turned off the vacuum) I think we produced 20 cases the first night, Cameron did not package the first bag as stated. He did show up for a photo shoot.
On a leave of absence in 1983 to visit my ailing mother-in-law back east, I was able to visit potato chip plants, one in Ohio that Michael Season's out of Chicago asked me to visit, they shared with me the right fryer and set-up, as well as slicer and draining info, and packaging, even were to get the potato rack. Although we also used filbert racks at first.
Other information came from old-timers, folks that had made chips like ours years before. Al food has been done before, as a chef I know this.
I shared this knowledge with our company and worked with local engineers to set-up the a ladger plant, this lead to a very strong foundation for the company's success 1984-1988.
I was asked by you (Jim Green), my foreman’s David Eyers and Randy Cleays years later, "why did you leave", because I was asked to.
This was not right after all the hard work to set the foundation that has lead to your, Cameron's' and the company's success, that's not believing in People, if the person that developed the recipe can not be acknowledged. That’s Shameful. By the way, it's not the same recipe. We used cold-pressed Safflower oil then and local Willamette potatoes.
I also picked the potato that I enjoyed off the shelves, then visited with the local farmer, Tony Amstad from Sherwood, learned from him about caramelizing the sugars, how to store as well. The company states having selected the potato after testing 200varieties, it says it on the bag, I feel that’s not true.
I was recycling our oil from day one, food scraps to the local pig farmer, bartering with for juice for employers and hot soaks up in the mountains for them, too.
I support your green efforts, always have.
I was able to have a vision, the Green Onion and Yogurt, New Cheddar were developed by me though the Baltimore Spice Company, Funnoodles (local fried noodle product) were able to create a base from my work.
I share my vision with Cameron, Smaller bags, Tortilla Chips, always wanted to do the ridged chip, one without pepper.
My vision for favors is not the same now, but why give you that. The New Seasons profile of Cameron say he "Made" the chip, not sure about that comment, either. Not once did the man work with me on the recipe.
The little guy in your history is me, you have created a myth, reads to me like a rags to riches story, the broken van, driving products up and down I-5, I never saw a broken down van, even in my Golden Temple Bakery days 1978-80, when Brian Miller would pickup roasted nuts in a semi-truck.
I also enjoy the pictures of the softball team I put together on the website.
The best to you for your green efforts, your history is not accurate.
I would have enjoyed growing with the company, promises made but not keep.
Michael Slocum
ps, please do not have your hired hands contact me.
posted by oregonman at 9:25 AM
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