Chip potato markets are quiet. Plants are running almost exclusively on contract potatoes. Movement is strong for this time of the year. Plants are chewing through more potatoes because of this year’s reduced solids. Field delivery contracts may clean up ahead of schedule, with some companies transitioning to storage contracts as soon as next week.
While wet weather is slowing harvest this week, close to 70% of Michigan’s storage potatoes already are under cover. The rapid progress should leave plenty of time to clean up the 2020 harvest before winter weather sets in. If so, this will be the first time in several years that growers haven’t had to abandon potatoes at the end of the season.
US packers shipped 1.822 million cwt of table potatoes during the week ending September 19, 2020. That is up from 1.656 million cwt a year earlier. Michigan packers shipped 38,074 cwt of potatoes during the week ending September 26, 2020. That is up from 26,800 cwt during the same week in 2019. Last week’s Michigan shipments were 86.9% Russets, 6.0% Round White potatoes and 7.1% Red potatoes.
Wisconsin packers are selling size A Russet potatoes in 10# bags for mostly $9.00-$10.00 per 50# bales unchanged from last week. They are selling 40-70 count Russet count cartons for mostly $12.00-$14.00 per 50# box, down from $12.00-$15.00 per box a week ago. The weighted average shipping point price for new-crop Idaho Russet Norkotahs is $15.61 per cwt. That is down from $15.71 per cwt a week ago.
Wisconsin packers are selling 10/5# bales of size A Yellow potatoes for mostly $18.00-$19.00 per bale, unchanged from last week.
Long Island baled 10/5# size A Round White potatoes are selling for mostly $12.00-$12.50 per 50# bale, down from $12.00-$13.00 per bale a week ago.