SOUTH COAST — Never mind Maine or Idaho, some of the best potatoes grown anywhere come from Sakonnet towns and Westport.

Now five of those farms are joining forces to promote that fact with a new all-local potato brand — The RI Royal.

“Fresh and super creamy, the white potatoes in the purple bag with the Narragansett label,” are just now beginning to show up on store shelves and restaurant tables.

The marketing effort, which takes a page from the successful Rhody Fresh milk campaign, is backed by Farm Fresh Rhode Island, W.J. Canaan Produce Co., the R.I. DEM Division of Agriculture, and Semap ‘Buy Local’ of Southeastern Massachusetts.

Participants include Ferolbink Farms in Tiverton, Lacerda Farm and Quonset View Farm in Portsmouth, Sampson Farms in Westport, and Young Family Farm in Little Compton.

The five farms didn’t all at once begin growing a new sort of potato, said Jerome Sampson, owner of Sampson Farms. They are simply calling attention to a potato they believe is something special.

“It is a really delicious light potato that grows especially well in the moderate conditions we get here,” Mr. Sampson said. The potato doesn’t like extreme heat and needs a longer growing season than is found in Maine. Harvesting of these potatoes has just begun and lasts through much of October.

Elsewhere the spud is known as the Norwis, aka FL (Frito Lay) 657.

“It is an excellent all-around potato,” agrees Joe Lacerda Jr. of Portsmouth. Lacerda Farm grows an early variety to get things started, “but these are 80 percent of what we do.” “They are great for frying, mashed, baked and with sauces and soups. You can’t go wrong.”

Mr. Samson said his farm used to grow other varieties before being tipped off to this type by Pete Peckham, owner of Ferolbink Farms in Tiverton.

“He had been given some bags of seed to try and he shared five bags with us.” After harvest, so thrilled were they all with the results that Ferolbink ordered a truckload of the seed.

“Now it is our main crop,” Mr. Sampson said.

Because it is light and fluffy, this potato is especially good at absorbing flavors, making it delicious alone with butter or sauce or in a stew. It is a big seller in natural foods markets and in Portuguese markets and restaurants, among other places.

They know their product is a good one but these local farms face challenges not unlike those that drove area dairy farms to market Rhody Fresh Milk.

The prices offered by big regional distributors make it difficult for small New England farms (in comparison to mid-America monster farms) to compete. And any hope of profit can be devoured by transportation costs.

So by selling close to home, they avoid long-haul shipping costs and cutthroat pricing policies — and the end product on the store shelf can be priced competitively with those from the giant potato producers.

“And there is a actually chance a little may land in our pockets,” said dairy farmer Louis Escobar of Portsmouth about the Rhody Fresh brand.

Farm Fresh RI and Semap also point out that local brands like the RI Royal tap into a growing consumer desire to buy products produced nearby. Not only homeowners, but schools and colleges are increasingly seeking local produce both for quality and environmental reasons.

“Just as successful cooperatives like Rhody Fresh Milk and Rhody Warm Blankets, local potato growers have teamed up to cooperatively market fresh local potatoes that are just days from harvest,” said Ken Ayars, chief of the R.I. Division of Agriculture. “Buying local keeps family farms viable and ensures a fresh product, and saves on the energy costs farmers would need for storage — and the taste of locally raised spuds can’t be matched.”

Mr. Sampson said that when he was approached about joining the group, he asked why a Westport grower would be part of a Rhode Island potato project.

“They told me, ‘You’re in Westport — close enough.’” Plus, the potato is the same as are the growing conditions.

Mr. Samson said this has been a decent season for these potatoes.

“It got pretty dry in mid-summer but we are fortunate to have irrigation — we irrigated twice.” September rains were a bit much, but the earlier dry spell left his fields able to absorb the near record rains.

Overall, a good year, Mr. Lacerda said, a year that would have been better without the September downpours that rotted crops in a few low-lying places.

“Our big problem this year was the squeeze with fuel and fertilizer costs. A few years ago it was the low-carb thing that hurt us but the diet people are coming back to potatoes,” Mr. Lacerda said. “Now it’s the fuel ... It’s getting harder for farmers all the time.”

The RI Royal is available at a growing number of markets including Clements’ in Portsmouth. Check www.farmfreshri.org.

RI Royal growers

• Ferolbink Farms, 993 Neck Road, Tiverton: Circa 1870; 275 acres; Jason ‘Pete’ Peckham; potatoes, corn, pumpkins, winter squash

• Lacerda Farm, 324 Union St., Portsmouth; Circa 1923; 120 acres; Joseph F. Lacerda Jr.; corn, potatoes, pumpkins

• Quonset View Farm, 895 Middle Road, Portsmouth: Circa 1915; 140 acres; David M. and William J. Cotta; berries, potatoes, pumpkins, Christmas trees

• Sampson Farms, 222 Old Bedford Road, Westport: Circa 1850; 75 acres; Jerome Sampson; potatoes, corn, pumpkins, winter squash, berries, fruit

• Young Family Farm, 260 W. Main Road, Little Compton: Circa 1997; 180 acres; Tyler and Karla Young; vegetables, potatoes, fruits, berries, herbs, nursery plants, flowers.