USDA Report Indicates Potato Growers & Other Farmers Need More Truck Drivers

Potato growers are not the only ones dealing with tight reefer capacity as truck shortages worry farmers and drive up prices across the country.

Already deep into the potato harvest season, farmers in areas such as San Luis Valley in Colorado, Twin Falls, ID, the Columbia Basin, WA, and Central Wisconsin are feeling a transportation strain. Wisconsin, ranked as the country’s third-largest potato grower, recently posted a 10 percent output increase. But the rise in demand prompted reefer rates to surge by $1.19 per mile, positioning the average outbound rate at $4.37 per mile. Wisconsin has a history of potato transportation challenges with the 2017 truck driver strike over electronic monitoring devices standing as one of the worst.

The cost of reefers traveling from Idaho to Boston upticked by 21 percent, rising from $7,000 in early August to $8,500 through October. The long-haul cost from Idaho to Atlanta recently skyrocketed by 39 percent, rising from $4,675 to $6,500, according to the USDA. Those numbers show little sign of waning.

“We’re really getting out there and trying to encourage retailers to try to look forward and really start to build their inventory on potatoes because it’s going to be a challenge as we head into this winter timeframe,” Idaho Potato Commission director Ross Johnson reportedly said.

Loads originating in the Atlanta area are coming with a higher sticker price as well. Georgia farmers saw a 12-month high of $3.88 per mile while regions such as Hunts Point, N.Y., experiences onerous rates that exceeded $4.21.

Kevin Vandenberg, account director at logistics corporation C.H. Robinson, predicted that spot rates would escalate by upwards of 6 percent by year’s end. He attributed the tight trucking capacity to wide-reaching factors that include higher driver demand, slower truck manufacturing output, and retail chains luring CDL holders with high salaries and sign-on bonuses. Vandenberg also pointed out that a high percent of long-haul now fall into the owner-operator category. He anticipates greater labor participation as regulations create more truck driving career opportunities.

“Right now, we’re trying to do that as well, trying to make life easy for our (transportation) providers,” Vandenberg reportedly said. “We need the supply to meet the growing demand that’s out there.”

The USDA recently reported that agricultural loads in numerous regions are experiencing adversity. The tightest regions include California’s Kern District, Salinas-Watsonville, and Santa Maria. Large swaths of Idaho, as well as Eastern Carolina, New York, and Washington State require more truck capacity. The transportation challenges are likely to impact the price of produce such as honeydew melons, carrots, grapes, cucumbers, avocados, lemons, lettuce, broccoli, and a wide range of other fresh fruits and vegetables.