State potato acreage expected to decrease Overproduction, drop in consumption blamed

PRESQUE ISLE -Potato industry officials this year had anticipated an increase in the state’s potato acreage to accommodate new processing capacity.

A decrease of almost 5 percent, however, has been predicted as a result of overproduction in the 2000 crop and a drop in processed potato consumption.

Maine’s potato acreage is expected to drop from 64,000 acres to about 61,000 acres, according to industry observers, including the North American Potato Market News.

If the predictions come true, it would be a new record low in Maine potato acreage.

“It’s been a hard year in the potato industry,” Donald Flannery, assistant director of the Maine Potato Board, said Thursday.

The trend is the same across the country in the states like Maine that plant potatoes in the spring and harvest in the fall. The U.S. production is expected to decrease by 9 percent, or about 109,200 acres.

Depressed prices for last year’s crop were blamed on overproduction and a glut of produce on the market.

“Observers suggest that growers seem to be more serious about cutting back this year than they have been for many years,” said the potato market newsletter.

If the national predictions prove true, the decrease would be the largest-percentage reduction since 1986 and the second-largest in the last 50 years, the latest issue of the newsletter said.

Other significant decreases are predicted for Idaho, Oregon, Washington state and New York.

Last year in Maine, announcements of potato-processing plant construction in Easton and Limestone sent hopes soaring that acres would be added.

But as the demand for french fries and other processed potato products dwindled last year, Lamb Weston and McCain Foods decided to put their projects on hold.

At the same time, the potato glut depressed prices for growers, and Flannery expects that the state industry will lose some growers as a result.”Fewer growers are willing to take the risk of planting potatoes without a market for them,” the industry executive said.

For the period since after World War II to the present, Maine production peaked at about 150,000 acres.

The majority of the projected acreage decrease is expected to come from the tablestock growers, those who grow potatoes for the fresh market, according to Flannery. The seed industry also may lose some acreage, he said.

About 65 percent to 68 percent of the Maine crop is used for processing, while about 24 percent is utilized as seed. The smallest amount of the crop, 10 percent, is sold on the fresh market.

There is a bright spot in the situation, however. In the tablestock market, Maine has been able to produce a supply that meets the demand without much left over.

“We are very focused on our markets,” Flannery said, also citing the quality produce grown by Maine farmers.The industry across the country needs to “get in line” with the demand, Flannery said.

Decreasing acreage is not expected to reduce the industry’s ability to respond to processing companies should they decide to continue with their construction plans.

Flannery said the infrastructure, such as the fertilizer and equipment dealers, will continue to exist. If processing contract volume increases, the industry can “easily” handle it, the industry official said.

“I think the growth is going to come from processing potatoes,” said Flannery. “But the decrease won’t put us at risk.”