Harvest started last Sunday in southern Michigan. The crop is in good condition and growers are expecting above average yields. North Carolina growers will finish their chip harvest this week. Harvest is continuing in Virginia, Florida, and Georgia. Harvest is expected to begin in Ohio this week. There is a surplus of chip potatoes. Though business has been slow, our sources indicate that it is easier to get an order than it is to get trucking. Transportation continues to be an issue.
Canada growers planted 378,625 acres to potatoes this year. That is 19,145 more acres than they planted in 2020, a 5.3% increase. Increases in potato acreage for the frozen processing and table potato sectors accounted for most of the growth. Ontario growers added 1,825 acres of potatoes this year. Most of the increase came in chip potatoes, while table potato acreage remained flat. Stats Canada used the previous five-year average to estimate Quebec’s potato area, at 43,000 acres. That would be a 5.8% reduction in planted area; however, we believe Quebec’s actual planted acreage is closer to 47,000 acres.
US packers shipped 1.672 million cwt of table potatoes during the week ending July 17, 2021. That is up from 1.646 million cwt a year earlier. USDA did not report any Michigan table potato shipments for the week ending July 17. Michigan also did not ship any potatoes during the week ending July 10, 2021. Year-earlier shipments from the state totaled 30,000 cwt.
Wisconsin packers are selling size A Russet potatoes in 10# bags for mostly $8.00-$9.00 per 50# bale, up from $8.00-$8.50 last week. They are selling 40-70 count Russet count cartons for mostly $19.00-$20.00 per 50# box, up from $19.00 per box a week ago. The weighted average shipping point price for Idaho Russet Burbanks is $15.96 per cwt, up from