SUPPLIER REPORTS STRONG POTATO TONNAGE AND GOOD SUPPLY.
POTATO growers in California have made an early start to harvesting this year.
Supplier Mazzei Franconi Co, which has been working with a number of local growers to bag and supply red, white and yellow non-GMO potatoes since the 1970s, reports a good tonnage coming in with a strong supply, having seen the harvest start on April 29th.
The family-owned company’s John Clerou said in a recent interview with Fresh Plaza that it was a a far cry from last year, when harvest started mid-May with light yields for the first three to four weeks.
“It wasn’t until we got into June that we started having normal yields and normal volume out of the area,” he said. “This year is more of a typical year, with good supply in May to ship.”
Across the country, storage crop is still coming out of key growing regions including the Pacific Northwest. On new crop, Florida is also harvesting new crop reds and yellows but is close to finishing up on new crop white potatoes.
“Things should be cleaning up nicely and we should have a pretty good runway for us once we get past Memorial Day with some of these other districts winding down,” John said.
The region should ship until the middle of July. Meanwhile, a better crop over last year means pricing isn’t as strong as it was for the 2023 season. However, it’s still in line with other districts and John believes the outlook is good.
