Changing Minimum

摘要

What is the best market for small potatoes? The minimum size standard for Idaho fresh potatoes is 4 ounces. Consumers who buy a 5- or 10-pound bag of potatoes find tubers of assorted sizes, but the smallest is about 2 inches in diameter, or 4 ounces.What would happen if that minimum size increased to 5 ounces? The Idaho Potato Commission (IPC) asked my colleagues and me that question. We knew two things from the beginning. First, the quantity of potatoes that could go into the fresh market would decrease. Second, the price would go up. We needed to know the amount of potatoes in the 4-to 5-ounce range. According to USDA, 27 percent of the Eastern Idaho potato crop is in the 4- to 6-ounce category (2000-2010 average). Since the USDA data did not break it down further, we estimated that half were 4 to 5 ounces. That is about 5 million cwt. for an average crop.