Since 1964, Berks Countians have been satisfying their cravings for a salty snack with the crunchy delight of Dieffenbach’s kettle-cooked potato chips. And it all started in the kitchen of dairy farmer Mark Dieffenbach’s home in Womelsdorf. When Mark got started, his chips became a quick hit amongst family and friends. He moved to sell them at farmers markets first, seeing popularity rise quickly. Mark eventually ended his career in farming to pursue chip manufacturing full-time. Since, Dieffenbach’s has grown exponentially. Today it’s a five-kettle, third-generation, family-run business. Keeping the rich history alive, Dieffenbach’s continues to use the first kettle cooker Mark built in the 60s, the original mouthwatering recipe…all in the location where it all began – now home to the main plant and corporate offices. While Dieffenbachʼs satisfies our deepest chip cravings, the business also loves to give back to Berks in other ways.
Passion Poured Out
Dieffenbach’s is truly passionate about reducing waste, fighting hunger and giving back to the community. One way the company fulfills this passion is by recycling any and all possible byproducts, from cardboard to potato peels and everything in-between. Potato peels are donated to local farmers for their feed rations. Potato wash water is reused in the plant as much as is safely possible. It is then stored in a holding tank and is land-applied to local crops. Since farming has always been a large part of Dieffenbach’s history, the company truly values local farmers and aims to give back to them as much as possible. Any trash that cannot be recycled is compacted and turned into energy. This helps to significantly limit the amount of waste added to landfills.
Today, Dieffenbach’s remains a regional brand favorite, while One Potato Two Potato and Uglies are their national brands making a difference and garnering an amazing reputation. One Potato Two Potato is a healthy collection of gluten-free, fresh-sliced sweet potato and root vegetable chips. Uglies are “ugly” potatoes transformed into tasty kettle-cooked chips. Potatoes that would normally be discarded due to minor cosmetic imperfections such as their size or color do not go to waste. Marketing Manager Morgan Santoro explains, “Dieffenbach’s really strategized and found a way to take ugly potatoes and make them into the product that they are today – a national growing brand that has received a lot of attention.” The Uglies brand not only minimizes food waste, but also helps to fight hunger. A portion of the brand’s profits goes to VivaKids, a local nonprofit fighting hunger in developing countries. VP of Sales & Marketing Dwight Zimmerman affirms, “The heart and soul of Uglies is reducing food waste and creating a market for these potatoes for the farmers and also fighting hunger.”
Giving Back
One very special way Dieffenbach’s recently gave back was during the COVID-19 shutdown of restaurants in the spring of 2020. They didn’t waste any time figuring out what to do with their abundance of potatoes. The decision to have a potato giveaway at the Berkshire Mall in Wyomissing yielded a larger turnout than anticipated. As traffic wrapped all around the mall and lined up onto Route 12, Dieffenbach’s gave away 45,000 pounds of potatoes. Staying faithful to their family-owned business, their passion for giving back and dedicated to their tagline, Dieffenbach’s remains a Truly Enjoyable Snack Since 1964.
Upcycling Uglies. The launch of the Uglies brand of kettle chips in 2017 has allowed Dieffenbach’s to upcycle roughly 4.2 million pounds of potatoes.
Flavor fun. If you love variety, you’ll love the many flavors of kettle chips available from original to mesquite BBQ, sweet ghost pepper and so much more.
