The weekly chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Craig County, Okla.) 1905-1913, 1912-01-12
WHERE OUR SPUDS
ALL COME FROM
Imports And Exports of Potatoes,
19ot-1e1f.

The recent announcement that large
quantities of potatoes are being i'm
ported into the United States lends in
terest to a statement prepared by the
bureau of statistics. Department of
Commerce and Labor, showing the inn
ports and exports of potatoes during
term of years While the production
of potatoes in the United States is
usually sufficient to meet the require
ments of its population, there have
been a number of occasions following
short crops in the United States on
which considerable quantities were inn
ported. On other occasions, when
there were shortages abroad and large
crops in the United States, consider
able quantities were exported. The
total imports of potatoes into the Unit
ed States in the last ten years aggre-
gated 22,S45,634 bushels, valued at
$1O,9S5,770, or about As cents per
bushel this valuation being based up
on the wholesale market price in the
countries from which imported and
does not, therefore, include the cost of
transportation or duties paid, the rate
of duty being 25 cents per bushel of
60 pounds both under the present law
and its immediate predecessor. The
exports of potatoes from the United
States during the same decade amount
ed to 10000, ,566 bushels, valued at $8,-
413, 675, an average of n cents per
bushel
Potatoes imported into the United
States come chiefly from Canada, Mex
leo, and Bermuda in America, and
Scotland, England, Ireland, Germany,
and France in Europe, while in recent
years small quantities have also been
brought from China, Australia, and the
Canary Islands. The potatoes export
ed go chiefly to the West Indies, Cen
tral America and Canada, the largest
quantities usually to Cuba, Canada,
and Panama and lesser quantities to
other Central American states and the
West Indian Islands. Small quantities
have also been sent in recent years
to China, Hongkong, British Guiana,
the Philippine Islands, French Oceania
and certain of the South American
countries, but practically none to Eu-
rope which, although large consumer
of potatoes, is also a large producer.
The worlds potato crop so far as it
can be measured statistically, runs be-
tween and billion bushels per an
mum, but these figures do not include |
the production of China, North Africa, |
and most of South America, the orig |
inal home of the potato, which was |
found under cultivation in South |
America by the Spanish discoverers
and transplanted to Spain and thence
to other parts of Europe. Germany is
by far the largest single producer of |
potatoes, her total crop for 1909 the |
latest available figures, being 1,716
million in Austria, lS4 million in Hun
gary, 1877 million in Great Britain, 120
million in Ireland, SO million in Can
ada, and 377 million in the United
States.
New York is the largest potato pro-
ducing state in the United States, her
product in 1910 being 441a million
bushels, against 35 million in Mich
igan, 2S million in Maine, % million
in Pennsylvania, 25 million in Wiscon-
sin, Is million in Ohio, u 2-9 million
in Illinois, 12A million in Iowa, and
about 10 million bushels each in Min
nesota and New Jersey, while practi-
cally al 1.-The remaining states are rep
resented with totals ranging from one
million to s million bushels each.
The largest Importation of potatoes
during the past decade occurred in
l909 being 1-3 million bushels; the
argest exports of the decade occurred
n 1911. being 1-3 million bushels.