The USDA NASS
 New York Field Office
"Fact Finders for Agriculture"

E-mail: nass-ny@nass.usda.gov
(518) 457-5570

POTATOES

Released April 2006

Seasonal

No. 987-4-06

NEW YORK POTATO STOCKS INCREASE

Potato stocks, held for all purposes on April 1, 2006 by New York growers, dealers, and processors, totaled 500,000 hundredweight (cwt.), up 56 percent from last year. The USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, New York Field Office estimated disappearance in March 2006 at 800,000 cwt., compared with 380,000 a year ago.  Storage accounted for 10 percent of the 2005 potato production, up 4 points from a year ago.

The 13 major potato States held 114 million cwt of potatoes in storage April 1, 2006, down 11 percent from last year and 9 percent below April 1, 2004, for comparable States.  Ohio and Pennsylvania were dropped from the potato stocks program starting with the 2005 storage season.  Potatoes in storage account for 31 percent of the 2005 fall storage States' production, down 1 percentage point from last year.

Disappearance of 259 million cwt from the start of harvest to April 1, is down 5 percent from last year for comparable States.  Shrink and loss, at 21.6 million cwt, is down 20 percent from last year for comparable States. 

Processors have used 133 million cwt of 2005 crop potatoes so far this season, down 2 percent from a year ago and 3 percent below 2 years ago.  Idaho and Malheur County, Oregon, total processing decreased 2 percent from a year ago and Washington and the rest of Oregon total processing dropped 3 percent from last season.

Dehydrating usage accounts for 27.2 million cwt of the total processing, down 9 percent from last year and 10 percent below the same date in 2004.

Western States held 85.7 million cwt of potatoes in storage on April 1, down 7 percent from last year.  Idaho's potato stocks are down 18 percent from last year, Colorado's potato sheds held 13 percent less than last year, Montana's stocks dropped 11 percent from last season, and stocks in California decreased 22 percent from 2005. Washington's potato stocks are up 11 percent from last year and Oregon's stocks increased 37 percent from last season.

Central States accounted for 20.9 million cwt of potato stocks on April 1, down 27 percent from last year for comparable States.  North Dakota's potato stocks decreased 53 percent from last year and Minnesota's stocks are down 31 percent from 2005.  Michigan and Wisconsin potato stocks are unchanged from the same date in 2005.

Eastern States stored 7.30 million cwt of potatoes on April 1, down 6 percent from last year for comparable States. Maine's potato sheds held 9 percent less than last year, while New York's potato stocks increased 67 percent from a year ago.

FALL POTATOES:  Production and Stocks on April 1, 2005-2006 1/

State

Crop of 2005

Crop of 2006

Production

Stocks

Apr. 1,

2005 2/

Percent

of

Production

Production

Stocks

Apr. 1,

2006

Percent

of

Production
 

1,000 cwt.

Percent

1,000 cwt.

Percent
     

 CA

     3,648

        900

25

     3,240

        700

22

 CO

23,791

     9,000

38

22,292

     7,800

35

 ID

131,970

52,000

39

 116,975

42,500

36

 ME

19,065

7,500

39

15,736

     6,800

43

 MI

13,650

     2,200

16

13,920

     2,200

16

 MN

18,920

     6,500

34

17,630

     4,500

26

 MT

     3,551

     1,900

54

     3,434

     1,700

50

 NE

     9,288

   

     8,245

     2,200

27

 NY

     5,184

        300

6

     5,226

        500

10

 ND

26,765

10,300

38

20,500

     4,800

23

 OH 3/

     1,080

         

 OR

19,775

     6,200

31

22,023

     8,500

39

 PA 3/

     2,640

        500

19

      

 WA

93,810

22,000

23

95,480

24,500

26

 WI

30,450

     7,200

24

27,880

     7,200

26
             

Other States

  

     2,400

       
             

15 States 4/

403,587

128,900

32

372,581

113,900

31
     

1/  Stocks include processor holdings and most of the seed to plant following year's crop.

     Seed usage for all seasons in 2005 totaled 24.7 million cwt.

2/  Missing stocks combined into 'Other States'.

3/  Stock estimates discontinued in 2005.

4/  13 States for the 2005 crop.