Colorado Potatoes Have Strong Outlook
Jim Ehrlich, the executive director of the Colorado Potato Administrative Committee, recently said that the 2020 crop looks good, despite the extremely dry and warmer than usual weather. Some parts of Colorado’s potato growing area suffered a hailstorm in early June, but the crops recovered really well.
As Americans were homebound with the COVID-19 lockdown in March and April, they responded by buying a lot of fresh potatoes for home-cooked meals, Ehrlich said. Thus, Colorado potato storages emptied at a rate 40% faster than average.
“It was a pleasant surprise how the demand for fresh potatoes rose when people were eating at home and enjoying potatoes. We hope that trend continues,” he said.
By late June, as foodservice operators begin to reopen, Ehrlich said he was optimistic about how the country might rebound.
Between March 1 and June 24, the area had received less than an inch of rain, putting it in the “extreme drought” category. This, of course, has required a great deal of irrigation.
“Our water situation is tenuous and the region’s aquifer is being substantially lowered this summer. We’re looking forward to the new harvest in September and a good crop,” he said.
After fighting COVID-19 from March into May, Ehrlich said that people in Colorado are fatigued. “We are over it and ready to move ahead to normalcy,” he noted.
