This post examines the recent season at Mitolo Family Farms, a major South Australian grower of potatoes and onions. It explains how an exceptionally volatile weather pattern over five months sharply reduced yields and affected quality.
Drawing on three decades of agricultural experience, I break down the crop damage and market impacts. I also discuss what growers and buyers can expect over the next season.
Season in review: extreme weather and its consequences
The past five months delivered a sequence of challenging weather extremes: a hot summer, a late burst of heat, followed by cold, wet and windy conditions. This pattern amplified stress on crops at critical development and harvest stages.
As a result, there were lower volumes and compromised marketable supply. In practical terms, Mitolo — which produces more than 200,000 tonnes of potatoes and over 70,000 tonnes of onions annually — experienced one of its toughest seasons in over a decade.
The company primarily supplies the domestic market. There are also limited exports to the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Europe.
Crop-specific impacts: potatoes and onions
Potatoes bore the brunt of inconsistent temperatures and wet conditions. The combination of extreme heat followed by cold and moisture during maturation created both physiological and mechanical problems in tubers.
While some defects are cosmetic, the net effect was a notable reduction in marketable yield.
Many of these issues don’t necessarily make potatoes unsafe to eat. However, they do lower pack-out rates and increase sorting costs for processors and retailers.
Onions were also affected by the extended hot, dry summer. Yields declined and overall quality suffered, although bulb sizes remained broadly consistent.
Mitolo reports that less than 5% of its onion crop is white onions — most of which are earmarked for export. Export channels into the Middle East and Europe are strategic for balancing domestic shortfalls.
Market implications and outlook
Rising input costs have been passed through to consumers, which in turn softened domestic demand for fresh potatoes and onions. While short-term supply constraints can push prices higher, consumer sensitivity to price increases can limit how much of that cost is absorbed by growers via sustained higher returns.
Several caveats remain: climate variability, input price volatility, and logistical constraints can all influence the recovery pace.
What growers, retailers and consumers can expect
From an agronomic and supply-chain perspective, there are practical actions and expectations worth noting.
Growers should consider resilient management tactics — such as refining irrigation scheduling, reviewing cultivar choices for stress tolerance, and investing in harvest timing and handling improvements to reduce mechanical damage.
Here is the source article for this story: “Extreme weather has reduced yields and created widespread shortages”