Source: Potatoes USA
From July 2020 to June 2021, potato sales increased in dollars by 3 percent but declined slightly in volume by 0.3 percent compared to the previous July-to-June marketing year. The elevated purchasing in 2020 led to a slight decline in overall volume; three categories fell in volume sales from July 2020 to June 2021. However, compared to sales prior to the pandemic, buying cycle shows an increase in value and volume. Consumers bought 577 million more pounds of potatoes from July 2020 to June 2021 than July 2018 to June 2019.
Refrigerated potatoes had the largest increase compared to the same period the previous year: a 10.6 percent increase in dollars and a 5.3 percent increase in volume. Frozen potatoes kept a stronghold on sales, with dollar and volume sales increasing by 6.3 and 4.6 percent, respectively, even with an increase in overall average pricing. Deli-prepared sides increased compared to the same period in 2019 and 2020, but have still not returned to pre-pandemic levels. The two largest volume-driving categories, chips and fresh potatoes, increased in dollar sales but both fell in volume by 1.8 percent.
The decline in fresh sales was largely impacted by a decline in russet sales, which fell by 3 percent in dollars and 3.4 percent in volume. Russets make up 60 percent of the volume share of fresh sales. The second-largest fresh category, red potatoes, also fell in dollars by 3.1 percent and volume by 1.9 percent. However, yellow potatoes increased by 9.7 percent and volume by 7 percent. Additionally, petite and medley potatoes increased by double-digits in value and volume. One- through 4-pound bags of potatoes were the only pack sizes that grew, with an 11.5 percent increase in dollars and a 7.4 percent increase in volume.