Farm economics · 7 min read
Sweet Potato Acreage Economics
Slip cost, labor, curing shrink, storage cost, and packout-driven revenue for a 10-acre wholesale sweet potato block.
North Carolina alone grows ~60% of US sweet potatoes, and the crop economics are unlike any other Southeast vegetable: high slip cost, high curing and storage cost, and revenue that depends on pack-out grades set weeks after harvest.
Per-acre cost of production (10-acre block)
- Slips (12,000/acre at ~$0.06): $720
- Land prep, bed forming, transplant: $450
- Fertilizer + soil amendments: $210
- Herbicide + insecticide (weevil, wireworm): $180
- Irrigation (drip or overhead): $220
- Hand harvest labor: $1,100
- Curing (7–10 days, 85°F/85% RH): $180
- Storage (6 months at 55°F/85% RH): $350
- Packing, sorting, boxes: $650
- Total: ~$4,060/acre
Revenue
A good acre yields 450–550 bu (40 lb/bu). Pack-out typically runs 45–55% #1s, 25–30% #2s (jumbos + petites), and 15–25% cull. At recent wholesale ($22 #1, $12 #2, $6 cull), a 500-bu acre grosses roughly $6,400–7,200.
Where the pro forma dies
- Curing shrink and skinning. Bad curing drops #1 rate to 30% and kills margin.
- Weevil pressure in coastal counties. One weevil find quarantines the field. Rotate hard.
- Storage rot. 6 months of 55°F storage costs ~$0.60/bu; a bad room can rot 20% before you notice.
Run this in BAU, not a spreadsheet
The planner, calculator, and buyer marketplace are included on every plan.