Current UCUI
68/100
Moderate-High Uncertainty
+4 points from prior reading
Potato Market Intelligence
Potato Return Over Total Costs
Potato return over total costs measures the enterprise result after both variable and ownership or fixed costs are deducted from gross revenue. Growers, lenders, and procurement teams can test long-run sustainability while keeping cash flow distinct from full economic return.
Market Data
How to read this market
Potato return-over-total-costs data subtracts both variable and ownership or fixed costs from gross potato revenue. The market object is the full enterprise result under a documented cost scope that can include land, machinery, depreciation, storage, labor, overhead, insurance, and financing.
Use the data to test long-run supplier sustainability and compare price, yield, and cost scenarios. Keep noncash and allocated costs explicit so cash flow is not confused with full economic return.
Data Module
Potato Return over Total Costs
Market objectgross revenue less total costs
Primary measurereturn after full cost
Key dimensionsfarm, crop year, accounting scope
Commercial usefull-cost profitability analysis
Cost contextland, machinery, storage, financing
Compare withcash flow and variable-cost return
Analysis
Why this matters
A farm can be cash-positive while earning a negative return over total costs if depreciation, owner labor, land opportunity cost, or deferred capital needs are not visible in cash spending.
Commercial interpretation should separate liquidity from economic profitability when assessing whether contract terms can support durable supply.
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 procurement, finance, growers, and lenders that need to assess potato return over total costs. The measure subtracts both variable and fixed or ownership costs from gross potato revenue, providing a fuller view of whether production compensates all resources used. MassGain helps users define total cost consistently and connect the result with potato prices, yields, contracts, and crop quality.
The suite can combine seed, fertilizer, chemicals, labor, fuel, irrigation, machinery, depreciation, land, storage, insurance, overhead, and financing under a documented scope. Revenue is linked to marketable yield, product mix, premiums, deductions, and realized sales. Growers can compare enterprise performance. Procurement can assess long-term supplier sustainability. Lenders can test debt capacity and downside resilience. Analysts can identify whether a loss is driven by market price, production, cost structure, or underused assets.
Total-cost estimates often include noncash and allocated amounts, so methodology matters. MassGain does not determine accounting standards or economic rent. It provides a transparent full-cost framework that makes assumptions visible and supports base, high, and low scenarios. Users can distinguish a crop that covers cash costs temporarily from one that generates an adequate long-run return.
Use Case
A potato farm reports strong cash flow but is delaying equipment replacement. MassGain adds depreciation, unpaid family labor, land opportunity cost, and financing to the variable-cost budget. The crop remains cash-positive but shows a negative return over total costs, prompting a contract and capital review.
FAQs
What belongs in total potato production cost?
Variable inputs plus machinery, land, storage, overhead, depreciation, labor, insurance, and financing may belong.
Why can cash flow differ from full return?
Noncash depreciation, owner labor, land opportunity cost, and deferred capital needs may not appear in cash spending.
How does MassGain support full-cost analysis?
It documents cost scope and connects it with marketable yield, realized prices, quality, contracts, and asset use.
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.