Despite only 3,000 acres of growing land, thanks to its milder climate, New Jersey also features a slightly longer harvesting season than its nearby Canadian neighbors, extending into the first week of November. The toughest challenge facing Jersey grower-shippers, according to Budd, is product safety as the Food Safety Modernization Act gets closer to full implementation. His advice is simple: “If you’re going to be a supplier with major retailers, you better have your food safety program in order.”
The South
With potatoes such a huge part of Southern cuisine, it is rare to find a cookbook from the region without at least a half-dozen potato salad recipes. It is also the destination for much of the entire country’s spuds as in-home potato consumption is a national high at 37 percent in the American South, and it is the only region where potato consumption has increased over the last decade rather than dropped or remained static.
The South is not, however, a major potato-producing region despite plentiful growing land. Dry soil and heat are not amenable to a rich potato crop, but the region does benefit from its different growing season with Texas, North Carolina, and Florida all harvesting potatoes in spring and summer while the rest of the country relies on fall crops. Overall, spud crop value for the South reaches around $265 million annually, with total acreage reaching about 72,000 for the region.
Conclusion
While it is true there is greater competition from Asia and international markets for potatoes, the U.S. and Canada continue to be leaders in this all-important market.
Yes, there is pressure to grow new varieties, lengthen harvests, and extend storage and shelf life, but the simple spud remains not only North America’s leading vegetable crop, but the fourth largest food crop on the planet.
Image: Shutterstock
