Potatoes Without Borders was initiated by Jacob (Jake) Vanderschaaf and Lukie Pieterse.

In 1967, Jake Vanderschaaf moved from his native country of The Netherlands to Canada. After completing his university studies in the United States, he spent four years working on farm policy with a farm organization in Canada. He then worked as a special assistant in the office of the Minister of Agriculture, Eugene Whelan. In 1996, Jake co-founded The Little Potato Company with his daughter Angela Santiago, who is now the CEO of the Edmonton-based company. Additionally, he launched Tuberosum Technologies in 1997, a potato breeding company based in Saskatchewan. Jake is past owner of Sunrise Potatoes, a farming operation located near Outlook, SK.

Although Jake retired in 2020, he is still actively involved in the potato industry. He can be reached at jakob@sasktel.net.

Lukie Pieterse is the editor and publisher of Potato News Today, which launched in 2014. With nearly 40 years of experience in the potato industry, Lukie began his professional career in agriculture initially as a potato farmer in South Africa during the 1980s and early 1990s, where he grew drip irrigated potatoes and contracted with for the major processing companies such as McCain Foods and Frito Lay. Since moving to Canada in 1996, he has worked as a potato consultant and information specialist, contributing several technical articles to potato print and online publications as a freelance writer, columnist, blogger and editorial advisor.

Lukie has been active as potato consultant for various international projects in North America, Europe, and South America. He provided consultation services to organizations such as the International Potato Center (CIP) in Peru, the World Potato Congress Inc., the United Nations/FAO, and potato companies in Canada and Europe.

Lukie can be reached at lukie@potatonewstoday.com.