US: Online Fresh-Potato Sales Up 18% as Shoppers Hunt for Value, Potatoes USA Says

Digital grocery has become the fastest-growing channel for fresh potatoes in the United States, according to a review of retail trends published by Potatoes USA on 16 September 2026.

Key figures

• Over the latest 52-week period, perishable dollar sales rose about 0.5%, while fresh produce’s dollar share slipped 0.7 points.
• Fresh potato dollar sales rose 0.3%, with growth led by yellow potatoes, petites and medleys.
• Online purchases of fresh potatoes grew 18% compared with the prior year.
• Digital grocery shopping for fresh foods reached roughly $30 billion, up about 23% year on year.
• Roughly 90% of fresh potato shoppers decide to buy before they reach the store.

Consumer sentiment remains cautious. In a May 2026 survey cited by Potatoes USA, 57% of primary grocery shoppers said retail and foodservice prices were higher than expected, and 78% said their financial situation was the same as or worse than a year earlier.

The organisation identifies four trends shaping the category: demand for value, the expansion of digital grocery shopping, meal-solution merchandising, and technology’s growing role in product discovery.

Why it matters

With category sales almost flat in dollar terms, growth is coming from specific formats and channels rather than from volume. Because nine in ten shoppers plan their potato purchase before entering the store, visibility in online shopping lists, recipes and retailer apps increasingly decides which pack and which variety ends up in the basket. For packers, that argues for investment in e-commerce-ready packaging, product data and smaller premium formats such as petites and medleys.

The figures are Potatoes USA’s own reading of retail data and have not been independently verified.

Photo: Potato display at a supermarket in New Hampshire (illustrative). MarkBuckawicki / Wikimedia Commons, CC0.

Source: Potatoes USA, “Key retail trends shaping fresh produce and potatoes”, 16 September 2026.