Canadá: British Columbia potato production in 2024 falls below five-year average

Yields were largely consistent with past years at 329.5 cwt per acre but lower acreage compared to historical levels contributed to a smaller harvest.

BC growers seeded 5,900 acres this past spring, down from 6,500 in 2020 and a peak of 7,250 in 2016. The onset of fall weather meant about 200 acres of spuds were left in the ground.

The net result was a harvest 5% below the five-year average of 1,971,000 cwt.

The final numbers reflect growers’ expectations at the annual potato field day in Delta this past August.

“The yield will be down this year because we had such a late spring,” Rod Burr of Burr Farms in Ladner said at the time. “I think the yield will be down for everyone.”

The crop was also facing tough comparables following high yields in 2023. Growers didn’t take last year’s yields for granted, declining to overplant rather than gambling on similar results this year.

That was a good thing, given an early blast of fall weather that made it difficult to get the last of the crop out of the fields.

The smaller crop in BC was at odds with the national trend.

Statscan reported earlier this month that Canadian growers harvested a record crop of nearly 127 million cwt. Yields were on par with BC at 330.9 cwt per acre, but harvested acreage was up versus previous years at 383,666 acres.

BC is one of the smallest producing regions in Canada, with just 1.5% of the national harvest. The majority of potatoes are sold fresh, with Kennebec potatoes being the primary chipping variety in favour with foodservice establishments.