Business

Dream coming true on North Fork

Sora Stoda
Sora Stoda removes imperfections in potatoes at the North Fork Potato Chip facility in Cutchogue on Thursday.

Since she was a child, Sora Stoda, 21, of Afghanistan, loved potato chips and dreamed of  opening a manufacturing company in her native Kabul to share the popular snacks with her countrymen. This week she came one step closer to achieving her goal when she visited Cutchogue’s Martin Sidor Farms, makers of North Fork Potato Chips. Carol Sidor, co-owner of the business, welcomed Stoda to her small facility on Bridge Lane and led her through the process step by step.

Stoda’s trip to the U.S. was sponsored by the Business Council for Peace (Bpeace), a non-profit group that volunteers business skills to help entrepreneurs from conflict affected countries such as Afghanistan. Stoda was identified by Bpeace as a ‘Fast Runner,’ an entrepreneur who shows great promise and drive.

After her internship in the U.S., Stoda plans to return to Kabul with a business plan and the skills to establish a potato chip manufacturing company “as soon as possible.” She hopes to use raw materials which are readily available in Afghanistan and looks forward to creating jobs and “doing something special for my people.”

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