Tasmanian potato growers counting the cost of 'worst season'

With the Tasmanian potato harvest in full swing, the effects of the extremely wet winter and mild summer are being realised.
One of the State’s top growers, Max McKenna, said it has been the worst growing season he has experienced in the 51 years he has been farming.

“For some growers, yields are down up to 50 per cent,” he said.

“But across the board, most yields are down 20-30pc.”

Mr McKenna grows potatoes and other vegetables on 280 hectares at Galwer in Tasmania’s north.

He said it wasn’t just yield either - the size of potatoes were also smaller.

Carrick grower and contract harvester Rick Elias agreed it was the worst growing season on record.

“Our harvest has been down about 25pc but there are worse areas than ours,” he said.

The Elias family normally harvest about 5000 tonnes of their own potatoes and contract harvest 2000-3000t.

Mr Elias said the only saving grace had been the generosity of their processor Simplot.

The American-based company had reduced prices by about $25/t earlier this year but have since increased the contract price about $20/t because of the terrible season.

They also are assisting growers who may fall short of their tonnages by paying about $50/t for every tonne contracted but not delivered.

“That’s just unheard of,” Mr Elias said. “It will help growers to retrieve some of the costs they have lost to grow the failed crop in the first place.”

Simplot has also guaranteed growers another price increase of about $20/t next year to help offset the losses.

“They didn’t need to do it but they did, they’ve gone above and beyond,” Mr Elias said.