diff --git a/xCAT-test/bats/postscripts_otherpkgs.bats b/xCAT-test/bats/postscripts_otherpkgs.bats
index 3a7ffb4cc..26495412e 100644
--- a/xCAT-test/bats/postscripts_otherpkgs.bats
+++ b/xCAT-test/bats/postscripts_otherpkgs.bats
@@ -334,3 +334,27 @@ run_sdk_block()
     [ "$status" -eq 0 ]
     grep -q 'xCAT-sles15-sdk1' "$LOGGER_LOG"
 }
+
+# Drives the package list split and the two diagnostic lines that follow it. The range ends on
+# the "for" line that starts the package loop, and that line is dropped: the loop is not part of
+# what is measured.
+run_pkglist_diagnostics()
+{
+    local range
+    range="$(extract_line_range "$OTHERPKGS" 'pkgsarray=' '^[[:space:]]*for x in')" || return 99
+    local pkglist="foo bar" hasyum=1 yumcmd=dnf hasapt=0 haszypper=0 oifs=$IFS
+    eval "$(printf '%s\n' "$range" | sed '$d')"
+}
+
+@test "the package list diagnostics print nothing when VERBOSE is not set" {
+    VERBOSE= run run_pkglist_diagnostics
+    [ "$status" -eq 0 ]
+    [ -z "$output" ]
+}
+
+@test "the package list diagnostics print the list and the package manager under VERBOSE" {
+    VERBOSE=1 run run_pkglist_diagnostics
+    [ "$status" -eq 0 ]
+    [[ "$output" == *'pkgsarray: foo bar, 2'* ]]
+    [[ "$output" == *'yum/dnf: 1 (dnf), apt: 0, zypper: 0'* ]]
+}
diff --git a/xCAT/postscripts/otherpkgs b/xCAT/postscripts/otherpkgs
index 49383801c..70a90376a 100755
--- a/xCAT/postscripts/otherpkgs
+++ b/xCAT/postscripts/otherpkgs
@@ -708,8 +708,10 @@ while [ $op_index -le $OTHERPKGS_INDEX ]; do
     IFS=$','
     pkgsarray=($pkglist)
     IFS=$oifs
-    echo "pkgsarray: ${pkgsarray[@]}, ${#pkgsarray[@]}"
-    echo "yum/dnf: $hasyum ($yumcmd), apt: $hasapt, zypper: $haszypper"
+    if [ $VERBOSE  ]; then
+      echo "pkgsarray: ${pkgsarray[@]}, ${#pkgsarray[@]}"
+      echo "yum/dnf: $hasyum ($yumcmd), apt: $hasapt, zypper: $haszypper"
+    fi
     for x in ${pkgsarray[@]}
     do
         #check if the file name starts with -- or -.