French fries exports in the EU-5 set new records in July. In the 12 months before July 31, 2017, the 5 million tons were just barely touched. Which country contributes the most to these records?
Figures show that the turnover of the 57 largest buyers, who create more than 95% of the export amount, was slightly lower than in July last year. However, in the 12 months to July, sales increased by 8% to 3.489 million tonnes.
Exports outside the EU have fallen to 87.260 tonnes. That was still 120.899 tons in March. However, the figure for July 2017 is still above the numbers for July 2015 and July 2016. In the 12 months before July, turnover was 1.247 million tonnes. That is 13,2% higher than in the 12 months before.
The price is the weak point
Price is currently the only weak point in EU-5. However, the industry plans to expand exports over the next 12 months, due to the large harvest and low prices. The average value in July is €762 per tonne. The price ranges from €695 per tonne for Belgian fries to €972 per tonne for French fries.
Where do the fries go?
The United Kingdom (UK) remains the largest buyer, despite Brexit and the weak pound. In the last 12 months, the country purchased 765.772 tons. However, France also purchased 565.285 tons from the other 4 countries. Strong demand from Germany and Belgium continued in July.
Although Belgians are the largest EU exporters, the Netherlands still leads in terms of export turnover. There has been a strong recovery in Polish exports, with the country importing 12 tonnes of fries from other countries in the past 111.403 months. That is an increase of 28,5%.