Potato Sustainability Alliance Releases 2025 North American Potato Sustainability Assessment Report

The Potato Sustainability Alliance (PSA) has released its 2025 On-Farm Assessment Report, highlighting continued participation and measurable sustainability performance across potato production in the United States and Canada. The report shares results and insights from the PSA Program‘s annual on-farm assessment, which supports growers in measuring and improving their management practices through a standardized, outcomes-based approach. 

In 2025, a total of 496 assessments, representing 646,313 potato acres across the United States and Canada, were completed through the PSA Program using the Sustainability Outcomes in Agriculture (SOA) Standard in the Cropwise™ Sustainability (CWST) app. Participating growers represent more than 50% of all potato acres across North America, demonstrating the continued growth and impact of the PSA Program.

Liz Hunt, Head of Sustainability at Syngenta:

"PSA’s 2025 assessment results demonstrate what is possible when growers have practical, consistent tools to measure progress and turn data into action. The breadth of participation across North America reflects a shared commitment to advancing resilient potato production, while recognizing and supporting the sustainability already taking place on farms."

Since transitioning to the SOA Standard in 2023, participation has grown by 76 assessments while represented acreage has increased by more than 57,000 acres. Growers completed assessments between October 1 and December 19, 2025 and received personalized regional Benchmark Reports, allowing them to compare their sustainability performance with anonymous results from growers in their pre-defined region.

 

Map of participating states and provinces by survey region, with the corresponding assessments and represented potato acres by region

Natalie Nesburg, Program Manager at the Potato Sustainability Alliance:

"Each year, the PSA Program provides growers with meaningful insights into the sustainability practices already happening on their farms while creating a trusted, industry-wide benchmark for continuous improvement. The continued growth in participation demonstrates growers’ commitment to measuring outcomes, sharing progress, and strengthening the sustainability of potato production across North America."

Growers receive immediate feedback on their sustainability performance and gain insights from other participants in their region through a personalized benchmark report. The SOA Standard framework evaluates six sustainability outcomes: Optimal Production, Water Impact, Soil Health, Biodiversity & Habitat, Human & Animal Health, and Community Leadership.

 

Selected screens from the Cropwise™ Sustainability (CWST) app showing the 2025 grower assessment process, including PSA partner selection, data sharing, and management practice reporting

Each outcome includes specific drivers and criteria that measure performance across four levels of leadership – Essential, Basic, Medium, and High – reflecting the adoption of beneficial management practices that support long-term sustainability. 

Participating growers maintained an overall High sustainability performance score in 2025, consistent with 2024. Community Leadership, Human & Animal Health, Optimal Production, and Water Impact all maintained High performance, while Biodiversity & Habitat remained at Medium. Soil Health shifted from High to Medium, identifying an opportunity for renewed focus while still reflecting widespread adoption of beneficial soil management practices across participating farms.

Overall performance scores and outcome scores from 2023 and 2025

The percentage of growers that achieved an average leadership level of essential, basic, medium, or high in each outcome in 2025

Natalie Nesburg:

"The results continue to demonstrate the strong sustainability performance of potato growers throughout North America. Maintaining a High overall performance, driven by the widespread adoption of beneficial management practices, while identifying new opportunities for improvement is exactly how continuous improvement should work. These insights help us develop resources and programs that support growers in achieving even greater sustainability outcomes."

A significant milestone in 2025 was the launch of the PSA Program’s Third-Party Verification Framework. During its inaugural year, 20 on-farm verification reviews were completed to confirm the accuracy of grower-reported assessment responses and identify opportunities to strengthen the program. Findings from these reviews will guide targeted improvements to participant training, assessment resources, and verification procedures, further enhancing the credibility and value of the PSA Program. 

The report also identifies opportunities for continued improvement across several sustainability outcomes. These insights will help shape future PSA Education Portal content, participant training, assessment guidance, and collaborative learning opportunities, while continuing to recognize the strong management practices already demonstrated by participating growers.