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

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

POTATOES

Released May 2006                              

Seasonal

No. 987-5-06

U.S. MAY 1 POTATO STOCKS DOWN 17 PERCENT
FROM LAST YEAR

The 13 major potato States held 73.0 million cwt of potatoes in storage May 1, 2006, down 17 percent from last year and 14 percent below May 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 20 percent of the 2005 fall storage States' production, down 2 percentage points from last year.

Disappearance of 300 million cwt from the start of harvest to May 1, is down 4 percent from last year for comparable States.  Shrink and loss, at 23.2 million cwt, is down 21 percent from last year for comparable States.  Processors have used 150 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 30.8 million cwt of the total processing, down 8 percent from last year and 11 percent below the same date in 2004. 
 Comparisons by region will not be made in this narrative to avoid disclosure of individual operations. Comparisons for individual States are as follows.  Idaho's potato stocks are down 22 percent from last year, while Maine's sheds held 8 percent less than last year, and Colorado's stocks dropped 28 percent from last season.  Stocks in Wisconsin decreased
3 percent from 2005.  North Dakota's potato stocks dropped 61 percent from last year, while Minnesota's stocks are 47 percent below last year, and California's potato sheds held 20 percent less than in 2005. Montana, Nebraska, and New
York's potato stocks combined decreased 18 percent from last year.  Michigan potato stocks are unchanged from the same date in 2005.  Washington and Oregon are the only States where potato stocks have increased from the same
date in 2005, with stocks up 10 percent and 28 percent, respectively.

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

State

Crop of 2004

Crop of 2005

Production

Stocks
May 1,
2005 2/

Percent
of
Production

Production

Stocks
May 1,
2006 2/

Percent
of
Production
 

1,000 cwt.

Percent

1,000 cwt.

Percent
     

CA

3,648

500

14

3,240

400

12

CO

23,791

6,000

25

22,292

4,300

19

ID

131,970

38,500

29

116,975

30,000

26

ME

19,065

5,000

26

15,736

4,600

29

MI

13,650

900

  7

13,920

900

  6

MN

18,920

5,100

27

17,630

2,700

15

MT

3,551

500

14

3,434

    

NE

9,288

    

8,245

1,200

15

NY

5,184

    

5,226

    

ND

26,765

7,200

27

20,500

2,800

14

OH 3/

1,080

          

OR

19,775

3,900

20

22,023

5,000

23

PA 3/

2,640

          

WA

93,810

15,500

17

95,480

17,000

18

WI

30,450

3,800

12

27,880

3,700

13
             

Other States

  

1,650

    

350

  
             

15 States 4/

403,587

88,550

22

372,581

72,950

20
             

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 for the 2005 crop.
4/  13 States for the 2005 crop