Potato growers facing tight margins may find opportunity in improved nutrient efficiency. At Potato Expo 2026 in Dallas, Yara North American Agronomy Solutions Manager Erika Wagner shared results from the company’s potato incubator farm in Idaho, where targeted nitrogen management delivered higher yields while reducing input use. “We were able to improve our nitrogen use efficiency by 12 percent. We put out ten percent less nitrogen on the acre, and I had a four percent yield increase,” Wagner added that more precise nitrogen timing also improved quality. “We were actually able to significantly reduce those reducing sugars and improve fry color at harvest,” Wagner said, noting the results were consistent across two growing seasons despite differing weather conditions. Yara plans to continue tracking potato quality through storage and measure final grower returns later this year.
