Would you like fries with that?

Judging from the coverage in national media, when most people think of trade, they picture large shipping containers arriving at U.S. docks chock full of products produced overseas and then sold in American stores.

I guess that’s true. Imports are a big and important part of the U.S. trade story. But it isn’t the whole story, and it certainly isn’t what I see out here on my patch of American soil. In fact, when I think of trade, I picture French fries, millions of French fries, consumed by hungry men, women and children all over the globe. And I know many of those French fries start life with me, here in Oregon.

{mosads}I am a potato farmer in Hermiston, Oregon. Every year, I produce 60,000 tons of potatoes that are shipped out to markets far and wide, as French fries and other various consumer products.

Idaho claims a lot of fame as a potato-growing state, and I give our eastern neighbor credit for growing some really good spuds. But Oregon is a major producer of potatoes as well. In fact, with an average yield of 53,000 pounds per acre, we are one of the nation’s most efficient potato producers, and some 75 percent of our annual crop is processed into food products like frozen French fries, hash browns, chips, dehydrated flakes and soups.

About 15 percent of the Oregon potato products are shipped overseas to such foreign markets as Japan, Taiwan, Korea, the Philippines, Mexico and South America. In fact, 25 percent of all frozen French fries shipped overseas originate from Oregon soil, including my farm.

These potatoes, and the world markets they go to, are my livelihood. They support my family, and the families of the people who sell me farm equipment; work in the processing plants; drive the trucks, and manage the seaports. I know that when those world markets have a chance to grow, I will sell more potatoes, and more people will go to work.

That is why I have asked not just my representative in the U.S. Congress, Sen. Ron Wyden (D), but all members to support the Trade Promotion Authority and the Trans-Pacific Partnership. We need jobs out here on my patch of America. While metropolitan areas across the country have largely recovered from the recession, rural communities are still hurting. We need an opportunity to grow, and trade agreements that will open more markets in the rapidly growing global economy will give us that opportunity.

With almost half a million jobs tied to trade, Oregon is one the country’s most trade-dependent states. And, yes, a large portion of that trade dependency is driven by famous companies that sell sneakers and computer chips. But our Oregon trade story is bigger than that. It reaches into small towns in every state, where farmers like me still meet and swap stories about our crops. And these days, we are talking about our hopes that American farm products will find their way to even more global markets in Taiwan and South Korea. Because that will translate to more jobs at home and food on our family dinner tables.

Urbach is a potato farmer from Hermiston, Oregon.