Now that the end of July is in sight, the balance (with regard to the old potato season) can be drawn up. It was a season with many extremes and good prices.
Low yields in the EU-4 countries created a positive mood, with prices being remarkably stable throughout the season. It only took a few extra impulses to push prices to record highs and yet this did not happen.
Additional export demand was not released, which meant that no new impulses were forthcoming. The second chance was the spring, a later spring could lead to a price increase. Despite the fact that the cultivation of early potatoes has partly failed, especially in West Flanders, there was also no impulse to take the market to new heights.
No sales for old potatoes
In fact, the opposite happened. The last old potatoes seem to be no longer being sold at the chip processors. At the end of July, old potatoes are still available. Growers who have waited a long time for a strong market revival are now fishing behind the net. The demand for old potatoes has completely disappeared, the processors have managed the connection well. The calculations are clearly better than in previous years.
During the season, the processors made sure that they had enough potatoes at their disposal in the crucial weeks (week 27, 28, 29 and 30). Agreements have been made with (contract) growers to keep for longer by means of mechanical cooling. French fries have been put in stock in the cold stores and maintenance is planned during this period. Next week, the processors will switch to the new harvest. That is 3 weeks later than normal, partly due to the moderate harvest of early potatoes in Belgium.
Little question to discover
Yet there is little demand to be discovered in the early potatoes. Many factories have sufficient coverage and are now first calling off their contracts from the past 2 to 3 weeks. In this way the need for potatoes can be met. Due to the delay in the transition to the new season, the early potatoes have made the connection with the mid-early potatoes. These are now also knocking on the door of the market.
The good harvest from Germany and the east of the Netherlands is putting extra pressure on the market, which sets in motion a negative price spiral (also prompted by the decline in the futures market).
Search for buyers started
The owners of old potatoes still have to search for buyers of this product. If no agreements have been made with processors, it is difficult to find the buyer. Export, starch or feed seems to be the only way out. The associated prices are a fraction of the price the potatoes had in the past year. The only hope is for an extremely wet period, as a result of which the new potatoes cannot be harvested and old potatoes have to be used again.