EEUU: Local trend drives growth in N.C.s summer potato production

Growers and officials expect brisk movement for a high-quality summer potato crop.

The North Carolina summer potato crop was running a bit ahead of schedule before frosts hit in early April, said Tommy Fleetwood, an agricultural marketing specialist with North Carolina’s agriculture department and an adviser to the North Carolina Potato Association.

The frosts didn’t cause any permanent damage, Fleetwood said.

“It doesn’t get cold enough here for total loss. The frost is just on the vines, not down into the ground.”

Instead, they put the crop on more of a seasonally normal schedule. Despite a roller coaster of hot/cold/hot again/cold again weather on the East Coast, spuds were looking great as of mid-May, he said.

“It looks great, a beautiful crop,” Fleetwood said May 11.

A high-driver item

Raleigh, N.C.-based L&M has boosted its North Carolina potato acreage from about 400 to about 500 acres this year, said Greg Cardamone, manager of vegetables.

Demand for locally grown produce has been a big driver of spud growth, Cardamone said. Demand for local is strong across the board, but it’s often easier to promote big-volume items like potatoes, he said.

“It’s a higher-drive item.”

Split-pallet option

Last year for the first time, L&M offered retailers a split pallet option on North Carolina spuds, with a half-bin of one variety and a half-bin of another.

The option was a locally grown hit for two North Carolina retailers, and Cardamone expects another strong year in 2016.

Lee Anne Oxford, L&M’s marketing director, agreed.

“I think the retailers are doing a really good job promoting it. Everybody’s excited about local in North Carolina.”

North Carolina’s table stock crop should begin shipping in mid-June at the earliest, Fleetwood said.

Most of the state’s production comes from the Elizabeth City area, with shipments running up and down the East Coast and some to Canada, Fleetwood said.

Even with an unfavorable currency exchange rate with Canada, product should again go north of the border this year, he said.

“Consumers like that fresh, new potato,” he said.

Acreage steady

North Carolina growers planted about 16,000 acres of potatoes this year, comparable to production the past six or seven years, Fleetwood said.

Not too long ago, however, acreage stood at about 21,000 acres.

“Sixteen thousand seems to be about what the market needs in our window of opportunity.”

About 30% of North Carolina’s spud crop should ship fresh this year, also comparable to recent years, Fleetwood said.

Of tht total, about 30% this season will likely be reds, he said. Reds have seen big growth in recent years.

Yukon gold and other yellow variety production also is up, but white production is down in North Carolina, as it is in many other spud-producing states.