Presenter says potatoes were powerhouse during pandemic

MONTE VISTA — The 39th annual Southern Rocky Mountain Agricultural Conference and Trade Show started its three-day run Tuesday, Feb. 2, on Zoom and at the Ski Hi Complex in Monte Vista.
The annual conference shifted mostly virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The first day’s Zoom sessions were centered on potatoes and began at 8 a.m. and continued to about 1 p.m. The San Luis Valley is the second largest fresh potatoes region in the U.S.
John Toaspern, Potatoes USA Chief Marketing Officer, gave an overview of potato sales from March to December of last year during his 30-minute session. His report was mostly positive.
Retail sales soared and continue to do so as people stayed home during the pandemic.  
“The thing that was exciting for our industry was that potatoes were the pandemic powerhouse,” Toaspern said. “We saw a significant increase in potato purchases. And this was for a number of reasons — comfort, familiarity, storability. Potatoes were the leading vegetable in terms of increases during that period.”
Toaspern said there was good growth across the core potatoes led by — russets, reds and yellows.
“Ultimately, Americans still love potatoes,” Toaspern said. “The number one vegetable sold in America, potatoes are on 84 percent of all food service menus and when surveyed Americans say that the potato is their favorite vegetable. So, we are in a great place. We need to try to lock in those retail gains but then also regain at foodservice.”
Record potato retail sales continued from October to December 2020, Toaspern said. All three months saw an increase in both dollar and volume sales, with the largest growth in December. Total store potato sales grew 9.3% in volume and 12.3% in value.
The fresh potato category at retail also showed a record growth of 12% in dollar sales and 8.2% in volume sales. Russets, reds, and yellow potatoes made up most fresh potato sales at retail, which all increased in dollars and volume. Five-pound bags of potatoes continued to make up the majority of volume sales and increased by almost 7%.
Foodservice, which includes sales to restaurants, were the hardest hit sectors for the industry. According to Toaspern, 87,500 restaurants in the U.S. closed permanently between March and December.
While the international market was off overall by 4%, Toaspern pointed out that some significant gains were made in China and Japan.
“We are not in a terrible position and I think we can recover quite quickly this year,” he said. “We are already seeing exports recover so that is positive. Things are trending in the right direction.”
Toaspern said Potatoes USA conducted a total store study in the fall and that they were wrapping up a presentation that will be available shortly.
While people logged into the virtual sessions, the socially distanced Trade Show was set up inside the McMullen Building of the Ski Hi Complex. The Trade Show was open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Zoom sessions continued Wednesday and Thursday, Feb. 3 and 4, beginning at 8 a.m. and wrapping up around 1 p.m. each day.
The conference was sponsored by the Colorado State University Extension and the Colorado Ag Experiment Station. The trade show was sponsored by the Monte Vista Chamber of Commerce.