So much rain has fallen on Red River Valley farms, the price consumers pay for produce may be going up. Shoppers could all be paying more. A report from the Northern Plains Potato Growers says prices for potatoes have doubled from this time last year.
The wet fields could mean a heartbreaking harvest for farmers. This year, some might not break even.
“We can’t have any more rain. It’s just too much,” says Chris Hoenke a potato grower near Grafton, N.D., who is expecting some major losses with his red potato crop. “It’s just a lot of water. A lot of water. A lot of [our potatoes are] drowned out. We’re probably looking at an 80 percent loss.”
Paul Dolan, general manager of Associated Potato Growers, says most potato growers between Hillsboro, N.D., and the Canadian border haven’t been able to harvest any of their crops. The ground is too soggy and harvest equipment is getting stuck in the mud, even with tracks on.
“I’m 63 years old, [have] been in the farming community and around potatoes my whole life, and I’ve never seen anything like this,” says Dolan. “Some areas that looked like normal potato farms just a few months ago now look like a lake.”
“We’ve been wet before,” says Hoenke. “We’ve been wet in the spring, wet in the fall where it’s tough to harvest. But we’ve never been wet for this long of the growing season. It’s been wet here since June. It hasn’t really quit raining.”
Hoenke is optimistic that a sunny October will give him a chance to harvest some more of his potatoes.
Source: WDAZ-TV