Is there Potato Shortage everywhere? There are up to 30 states where potatoes are cultivated for commercial purposes, Idaho continues to be the leading producer, followed by Washington.
In addition to a recent decline in potato production, the current shortfall is a result of the weather. The USDA reported that the nation’s production decreased year over year in 2020 and 2021. The US potato harvest in 2021 was 7% lower than it had been on average over the previous five years.Robertson Produce President Dan Robertson said Idaho farmers failed to yield a large crop in 2021, mainly due to a scarcity of water. “It’s just so dry out west,” Robertson said. “A lot of water shortages and then here we are, at the end of the crop, right before what’s called ‘new crops’ start and they’ve run out of potatoes. We’ve never seen it like this. It’s been like this for about two, three weeks.”
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Do we have to replace Potatoes?
Potatoes have been the hero of every other dish. From Indian Aalu Pakoda to French Fries, potatoes are a delicacy. Shortage of potatoes have created a lot of disturbance and chaos in the food industry. Production of potato is insufficient due to which the supply is less than the demand.
Restaurants and grocers are facing a lot of difficulty in coping up with the potato shortage. The prices are higher than usual because of the poor supply of potatoes. “I spent hours looking for potatoes, negotiating on all sizes and all counts. Now a 90-count potato is almost $60 delivered. It should be $20 to $25 max,” said the fruit and veggie monger.
When will the potato shortage end?
For restaurants, schools, nursing homes, hospitals, and grocery stores in Northeast Louisiana, Robertson Produce is a major supplier of Russet potatoes. The Monroe produce distributor Robertson Produce said in a Facebook post on Sunday that they are expecting their most difficult potato supply week to date.
“The few remaining Idaho supplies will finish out their final storages at the end of the week, or early next week,” the post reads. “There will be a true gap in supply around the middle of next week for a least one to two weeks. While there will be a few growers that start into their new crop Norkotahs toward the end of next week, we are not anticipating volume will be strong enough to slow down the climbing prices.”
As for now, it is predicted that the shortage of potatoes will be overcome by the end of the month. Rest completely depends on the weather conditions and crop harvesting.