Current UCUI
68/100
Moderate-High Uncertainty
+4 points from prior reading
Potato Market Intelligence
Potato Soil Moisture Monitoring
Potato soil moisture monitoring combines sensors, models, rainfall, irrigation, and field context to show whether water in the root zone is persistently deficient or excessive. Growers and processors can connect those conditions with emergence, bulking, disease, harvestability, quality, and contracted supply.
Market Data
How to read this market
Potato soil-moisture-monitoring data measures water available in or inferred for the root zone using sensors, models, remote sensing, rainfall, and irrigation records. The market object is field or regional moisture status tied to soil type, crop stage, and weather.
Use the data to identify persistent deficit or excess, compare fields with similar soils, and connect moisture conditions with emergence, tuber set, bulking, disease, harvestability, and quality. Interpret thresholds locally because the same reading can mean different things in different soils and growth stages.
Data Module
Potato Soil Moisture Monitoring
Market objectroot-zone moisture status
Primary measureavailable soil water
Key dimensionsfield, soil, crop stage
Driversrainfall, irrigation, ET
Commercial useyield and quality risk
Compare withweather, field observations, contracts
Analysis
Why this matters
Both low and high moisture can damage commercial outcomes. Deficit can limit size and yield, while excess can raise disease, compaction, harvest delay, and storage risk.
The market implication depends on timing and persistence. A brief anomaly may be manageable; sustained stress during a sensitive stage can tighten a specific size or quality class even if regional acreage is unchanged.
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, irrigation managers, processors, and agricultural lenders that need to monitor soil moisture in potato fields and production regions. Soil moisture influences emergence, root development, tuber initiation, bulking, disease pressure, harvestability, and quality. MassGain combines field sensors, modeled data, remote sensing, rainfall, irrigation, soil type, crop stage, and historical outcomes to create a more complete view than any single reading.
Interpretation must be local. A moisture level that is adequate in one soil or growth stage may be excessive or limiting in another. Short deficits may be manageable, while persistent stress during sensitive periods can reduce tuber size, yield, or quality. Excess moisture can also increase disease, compaction, harvest delay, and storage risk. MassGain helps growers identify fields requiring attention and helps processors understand whether a regional signal is likely to affect contracted production, timing, or quality.
The platform connects soil moisture with planted acreage, crop progress, forecast yield, regional prices, and supply concentration. It does not replace agronomic judgment or irrigation controls. Instead, it provides a consistent evidence layer for comparing regions and updating commercial scenarios when moisture conditions depart materially from the assumptions supporting a crop, contract, or lending plan.
Use Case
A grower cooperative sees persistent soil-moisture deficits during tuber bulking in fields serving one processing contract. MassGain compares irrigation records, weather, soil type, and crop stage, then lowers the large-tuber scenario while keeping total regional acreage unchanged. The processor protects only the affected product specification.
FAQs
Why is soil moisture important for potatoes?
It affects emergence, growth, tuber set, bulking, disease, harvest, and quality.
Can excess moisture also create risk?
Yes. It can increase disease, compaction, harvest delays, damage, and storage problems.
How does MassGain support moisture monitoring?
It combines local measurements with weather, crop stage, yield history, and market exposure.
Put this market intelligence to work
Get historical data, regional detail, benchmarks, alerts, exports, and API access tailored to your procurement
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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.