Current UCUI
68/100
Moderate-High Uncertainty
+4 points from prior reading
Potato Market Intelligence
Potato Crop Stress Index
A potato crop stress index combines regionally relevant hazards such as heat, drought, excess moisture, frost, water constraints, disease, and field disruption. MassGain ties each component to crop stage, historical outcomes, quality, yield, and regional market exposure for a transparent early-warning signal.
Market Data
How to read this market
Potato Crop Stress Index combines regionally relevant hazards such as heat, drought, excess moisture, frost, water constraints, disease pressure, and planting or harvest disruption into a structured crop-risk signal. The components should remain visible and be tied to crop stage because the same weather anomaly can have different effects at emergence, tuber set, bulking, or harvest.
Use the index with regional history, field reports, crop progress, and market exposure to identify potential effects on yield, size, solids, quality, timing, and storability. It is an early-warning tool, not a farm-level loss forecast.
Data Module
Potato Crop Stress Index
Geographygrowing region
Stagecurrent crop development
Hazardsheat, water, disease, field access
Outcomeyield, quality, and timing risk
Historyregional comparison
Decision useearly warning
Analysis
Why this matters
Stress intensity and commercial damage can diverge because timing, irrigation, variety, and crop stage determine sensitivity. A national weather headline may therefore matter little to one sourcing basin and greatly to another. The index is most useful when it identifies the specific physical trait or delivery window at risk.
Signal 01
Usable Crop Uncertainty Index
UCUI translates crop and market complexity into a simple uncertainty signal. Higher readings indicate greater uncertainty—not necessarily higher prices.
Understand uncertainty. Anticipate risk. Act earlier.
UCUI is designed to analyze potato-industry publications and data signals across regions, varieties, weather, disease, storage, supply, and demand.
WeatherHigh
DiseaseHigh
StorageMedium
SupplyMedium
Single-day snapshot based on a scan of 11,500+ web and social signals. Get historical and real-time data by clicking the button below.
The MassGain Daily
Today’s market analysis.
A daily editorial synthesis of physical potato data, crop signals, market reporting, and what participants should watch next.
September 16, 2026Latest MassGain publication
Potato market steady for now; Russia’s smaller crop is the salient risk
Spot prices are flat and USDA terminal reports read ‘market steady,’ but a renewed forecast for a smaller Russian harvest and recent regional harvest stress leave seasonal import timing and storage losses as the key uncertainty.
Signal 02
MassGain Potato Index
Independent physical-pricing intelligence and market-trend analysis for procurement, forecasting, contracting, and scenario planning.
Core Russet Carton Median
312.45 USD/MT
Latest qualifying physical-market observation
+4.75 (+1.55%)
Price discovery for the physical potato market
MPI is designed to track physical pricing data, price trends, deltas, and divergences across regions and potato types.
Series window45 days
Current public coverageCore russet cartons
Primary source basisQualifying USDA physical rows
UnitUSD per metric tonne
Single-day snapshot based on most recent 45 days worth of data. Limited to US Russets only. Get more complete, global data about all varieties by clicking the button below.
Signal 03
MassGain Spot Reference
An independent spot reference designed for price discovery, contract discussions, procurement comparisons, and risk modeling.
Russet Burbank — U.S. Midsize
305 USD/MT
Demonstration reference format
+1.6% WoW · Confidence: High
A trusted benchmark for pricing, contracts, and risk
MSR is intended to use real transactions and verifiable physical-market data to support negotiations, price checks, contracting, and risk models.
ProductRusset Burbank
SpecificationU.S. midsize, 40–70 count
Reference typePhysical spot benchmark
StatusIn development
Based on most recent 45 days worth of data. Limited to US Russets only. Get more complete, global data about all varities by clicking the button below. Full access also includes historical data -- including depreciated NYMEX/CBOE/EEX spot references -- projections, trends, and AI-driven insights.
The MassGain Product Ladder
From insight to intelligence to action
Four integrated products built for the physical potato market, delivered through public pages, reports, exports, dashboards, and API access.
1
Content
Original research, commentary, aggregated news, and market updates.
- What matters right now?
- What is happening out there?
2
UCUI™
Usable Crop Uncertainty Index: an AI-powered signal of crop risk and market uncertainty.
- Understand uncertainty
- Anticipate risk
- Act earlier
3
MPI™
MassGain Potato Index: independent physical-pricing intelligence and trend analysis.
- Price discovery
- Regional trends
- Procurement planning
4
MSR™
MassGain Spot Reference: an independent benchmark for price discovery and risk modeling.
- Contracts
- Negotiations
- Risk models
Content + UCUI + MPI + MSR + API access
Get historical series, regional detail, constituent data, exports, alerts, and direct data access.
Overview
Who is this for?
This page is for growers, processors, agricultural lenders, insurers, and risk teams that need a consistent potato crop stress index. The index combines regionally relevant indicators such as heat, drought, excess moisture, frost, planting delay, disease pressure, water availability, and harvest disruption into a structured signal. MassGain connects those agronomic conditions with crop stage, historical yield, quality, regional prices, and supply availability so the score reflects commercial consequence rather than weather intensity alone.
A stress index is most useful when its components remain visible. The same heat anomaly can have limited impact after maturity but materially affect tuber set or bulking earlier in the season. Excess rain may improve soil moisture in one region while preventing fieldwork or harvest in another. MassGain helps users compare the current signal with historical outcomes and distinguish likely effects on total yield, size distribution, solids, quality, harvest timing, or storage. Growers can prioritize field and marketing decisions, processors can identify sourcing regions that deserve contingency planning, and lenders can target updated borrower reviews. The index does not predict a specific farm loss. It provides a transparent regional early-warning measure with documented drivers and thresholds for deeper investigation.
Use Case
A processor sources from three regions that all report above-normal temperatures. MassGain's crop stress index shows only one basin experienced heat during a sensitive bulking stage, combined with irrigation restrictions and declining vegetation indicators. Procurement reserves optional supply there while leaving the other regions on normal monitoring.
FAQs
What goes into a potato crop stress index?
Weather, crop stage, water, disease, planting and harvest timing, and historical regional sensitivity can contribute.
Why should the index show its components?
Users need to know which hazard is driving the score and what yield, quality, or timing outcome may be affected.
Can the index predict an individual field loss?
No. It is a regional decision signal that should be combined with field observations and agronomic review.
Put this market intelligence to work
Get historical data, regional detail, benchmarks, alerts, exports, and API access tailored to your procurement
and market-analysis needs.
Data and Methodology
Professional market-data standards
MassGain is building transparent public market infrastructure. Each live metric will identify its date, unit, coverage, methodology, and source basis.
Data provenance
MassGain uses public, licensed, contributed, and independently derived physical-market information. Source availability and publication schedules vary.
Timing and revisions
Figures may reflect the latest available observation rather than a same-day transaction. Source data and MassGain calculations may be corrected, restated, or revised.
Not transactional pricing
MassGain figures are informational reference values and do not constitute executable bids, offers, settlements, or guarantees that a transaction can occur at the displayed value.
No individualized advice
Content and data are provided for informational and analytical purposes and do not constitute financial, investment, legal, trading, or individualized procurement advice.
Independent publication
Certain observations may be derived from USDA reports. MassGain is independent and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USDA.
Commercial use and licensing
Public display does not grant rights to reproduce, redistribute, republish, or incorporate MassGain indices or references into commercial products or contracts without authorization.