Reported U.S. chip potato movement totaled 3.983 million cwt during the five weeks in October. That is 192,000 cwt, or 4.6%, less than the industry shipped during the same five-week period a year ago. Strong movement from Michigan partially offset reduced movement from several other areas. At 1.097 million cwt, Michigan’s shipments exceeded 2025 movement by 258,000 cwt, or 30.8%. Wisconsin shipped 659,000 cwt during the month, 139,000 cwt, or 17.4%, less than year-earlier shipments. Shipments from the West Coast region totaled 392,000 cwt, down 28.8%. At 343,000 cwt, chip potato movement from the Mid-Central region was down 7.6%. Shipments from New York fell by 19.4%, to 253,000 cwt. At 159,000 cwt, shipments from Maine fell 37.7% short of year-earlier movement. The Red River Valley shipped 70,000 cwt of chip potatoes during the period, down 56.8% from the previous year. Pennsylvania growers shipped 41,000 cwt, compared to 69,000 cwt a year ago. The Southwest region shipped 166,000 cwt of chip potatoes during the five-week period, which nearly matched last year’s pace. On the other hand, chip potato movement from the Rocky Mountain region increased by 24.9%, to 393,000 cwt. At 311,000 cwt, chip potato movement from the Midwest region exceeded 2025 shipments by 22.0%. Season-to-date (August-October) reported chip potato shipments are running 15.4% behind the 2025 pace.
The next several weeks will be a busy time for government reports on potato crops and supplies. USDA will issue its first 2026 potato crop estimate on Tuesday, November 10. That will be followed by a stocks report on December 18. Canada’s crop production report will be out in early December. It will be followed shortly by that country’s December 1 potato stocks report.
U.S. packers shipped 1.802 million cwt of table potatoes during the week ending October 31. That is up from 1.737 million cwt shipped a year earlier. Michigan packers shipped 31,233 cwt during the week ending October 31. It compares to 42,050 cwt shipped during the same week in 2025. Last week’s reported Michigan shipments were 98.2% russets, 1.6% yellow potatoes, and 0.2% red potatoes.
Wisconsin packers are selling size A russet potatoes in 10-pound bags for mostly $9 per 50-pound bale, unchanged from last week. They are selling russet 40-70 count cartons for mostly $22-$22.50 per 50-pound box, compared to $22 per 50-pound box a week ago. The weighted average shipping point price for Idaho russet Norkotahs is $24.97 per cwt, up from $24.13 per cwt the previous week.
Wisconsin packers are selling 10/5-pound bales of size A yellow potatoes for $16.50-$19.50 per bale, up from $16.50-$18.50 per bale last week. They are also selling 50-pound cartons of size A yellow potatoes for $17-$19.50 per 50-pound box, up from $17-$18 per 50-pound box a week ago. They are selling 50-pound cartons of size B Yellow potatoes for $13-$15 per 50-pound box, unchanged from the previous week.
— This report was compiled by North American Potato Market News (NAPMN) for the Michigan Potato Industry Commission