09/25/08 Idaho potato harvest

What kind of year will this be for Idaho potato growers? WRIGHT "The long term outlook for this market is fantastic." Jerry Wright of the United Potato Growers of Idaho says the harvest is in full swing now but was delayed because many producers waited to allow the spuds to size up. Growers planted 300 thousand acres of potatoes in Idaho this year, 12 and a half percent less than last year. Wright says first indications are that the overall yield will be down about five to ten percent. WRIGHT "Somewhere around 357 hundredweight sacks per acre to 367. That would be your combined Norkota and Russet Burbank and that's lower by ten to 20 sacks versus what NASS reported last year. There will be no shortage of potatoes but there will be no excess potatoes as there has been in the past to hold markets down." He says Norkota potatoes coming off now are larger than the past several years with more 40 through 60 counts than the market wants but the Russet Burbank potatoes are smaller. WRIGHT "All in all we should have a pretty balanced crop if we run these things in tandem and do some really solid storage management and supply management." Storage and price, we'll look at that tomorrow. Today's Idaho Ag News Bill Scott