Growers are describing their 2024-25 Maine potato crops as “almost ideal.”
Only a dry spell in late August transformed a potential bumper crop into a “good crop,” said Bob Davis, vice president at Presque Isle, Maine-based Maine Farmers Exchange — or MFX.
Yields were good as was the quality of the storage potatoes because of the late-summer dry weather, he said.
Even the potato chip companies were happy.
“Everything is nice and straight,” Davis said. “We’re looking forward to a good year.”
Most growers were finished or nearly finished harvesting by mid-October.
Davis estimated Maine’s potato volume for the coming season at 18.5 million hundredweight, up about 10% from last year’s 16.8 hundredweight as a result of better weather during the growing season.
Last season was a dry year, he said.
In 2022-23, Maine growers produced 18.4 million hundredweight of potatoes.
The Pine Tree State offers a variety of potatoes, Davis said, but russets are the most popular, largely because they’re favored by some major processing plants. The caribou russet and norkotah russet are the most popular table varieties.
“Maine has become a state where you can order round whites, reds, yellows and russets all on the same truck,” he said.
Presque Isle-based Cambridge Farms also had a good harvest, said Ken Gad, owner and president.
“The weather conditions were absolutely ideal for harvest,” he said.
There were no rain or frost delays.
“The ground was working very, very well for all the growers,” he said. “Everything went into storage beautifully.”
Cambridge was finishing its harvest in mid-October.
“Quality looked great,” Gad said. “Everybody was very satisfied with their yields.”
The company probably finished its harvest in record time — about a week or two earlier than usual, he said, adding that “everything was perfect.”
Cambridge grows red, yellow, white and russet potatoes, but yellows and russets seem to be the varieties of choice.
“Whites are becoming more and more a specialty everywhere in the country, including Maine,” Gad said.
“In Maine, Canada and the Northeast, we’re growing more russets every year, more yellows every year and a few less whites,” he added. “The reds are up and down — some years we grow more reds, some years less.”
The company moves more white potatoes in summer than winter, he added.
Cambridge Farms works with growers around the U.S. and Canada to be a year-round shipper.
Gad said he expects overall volume at Cambridge Farms to be up compared to last year.
There was good news from Caribou, Maine-based Irving Farms Marketing Inc. as well.
“Harvest conditions were almost ideal this year,” said Noah Winslow, who handles sales and marketing for the company.
“We’re going to have a really high-quality crop to ship,” he said. “Yields were favorable, and quality looks excellent.”
The company focuses on russet, red, white and yellow potatoes in consumer packs.
Shipping from Irving Farms began in mid-October and should be going full force by the end of the month, Winslow said. The company ships throughout the East Coast, but it focuses on the Northeast because of the company’s proximity to those markets.
The firm also ships some potatoes to the Midwest and Southeast.
Irving Farms will start shipping in early November for the Thanksgiving holiday. The heaviest shipping period will be two weeks before Thanksgiving, Winslow said.
Other than the holidays, potato sales are consistent throughout the year.
“Potatoes are an all-purpose food item, so movement is pretty steady year-round,” he said.
Maine only has “a handful” of organic potato growers, said Davis of MFX, since only a few retailers request organic product.
“It’s not a huge business,” he said. But organic tubers are available to those who want them.
Maine has some strict laws for organic certification that discourage producers from getting into that category, Davis said.
“It’s really tough for us to grow organic here,” he said.
Growers said it’s difficult to predict fob potato prices this season.
“If we have a very large crop, as it appears, it’s going to put pressure on the price,” Davis said.
Potato prices likely will be consistent with last year for Thanksgiving and the holiday period, but they could inch upward after the first of year because of tighter supplies nationwide, said Winslow of Irving Farms.
“We’re not going to get high dollar on a short crop,” said Gad of Cambridge Farms. “We’re going to have to take an average dollar on a large crop to make our profit structure.”
But Gad was optimistic about the coming season.
“I have no qualms that Maine will be able to service the needs of their normal customer base or more in a very proper, proud manner,” he said.
