Along the eastern United States, the potato season is making its northward progression. Virginia growers are now preparing for the start of their harvest, which will occur in just over a week's time. It's a little later than usual due to the reluctance of wintery weather to loosen its grip this year. Despite a later start though, volume is looking to be close to the average.
"Due to the cool and wet spring, the Virginia potato season is set to start a little later than normal," said David Hickman of Dublin Farms. "We will begin harvest on July 4 with whites and reds, followed by yellows on July 15. Planting was done three weeks later than normal, but we have experienced ideal growing conditions and it's looking like a good crop. Yields are expected to be close to the average on all three colors."
Virginia part of the 'chain' of eastern US production
It's well known that significant potato production in the United States is centered in an area from Wisconsin to states west of the Mississippi River, especially Idaho and Washington. There is, however, considerable production along the eastern seaboard as well. Beginning in Florida and ending in Maine, potatoes are harvested from March onwards, with Virginia being part of this 'chain'. This season, the Virginia harvest is expected to last between four to six weeks.
"Florida begins their production at the end of April, followed by the Carolinas, with the latter only starting this past week," Hickman explained. "Like Virginia, the Carolinas also started somewhat later than usual. Virginia have a place in this market and we expect to harvest until the first week of August before production moves up into Delaware and further north."
Hickman noted that despite the dominance in volume of the larger producing states, the eastern crop enjoys excellent demand. "There is excellent demand for eastern potatoes because they are packed and sent to market straight after being harvested," he said. "They are not stored and therefore have a fresher skin and are more tender. We typically ship 12 - 15 loads a day in the peak of our season, with distribution spread from Florida up into Quebec, Canada. The majority of our potatoes are packed in 5lb and 10lb bags. We also have 2000lb bulk containers that get sent to re-packers. Before sending them, we grade and wash the potatoes ourselves so they are ready to be packed once reaching the facility."
New cooling facility increases capacity
Dublin Farms has this year just completed another cooling facility which increases their capacity. This is in response to increased demand for Virginia potatoes. They have also installed a new computerized inventory management system.
"We previously had cooling capacity for 18 loads spread over two facilities," Hickman said. "The new facility has a capacity of 12 loads. By cooling the warm potatoes out of the fields for 24 hours, it substantially extends the shelf life. Dublin Farms has also installed a computerized inventory control system to help keep track of where each load of potatoes are, which we were previously doing manually."
For more information:
David Hickman
Dublin Farms, Inc.
Tel: +1 (757) 824-5671