Early is not early with early potatoes

Last year around this time, many growers had to irrigate their premieres 3 or 4 times. That is not an issue now. There was also no night frost when the potatoes were grown - as was the case in several areas last year - this year. The cold spring has slowed down the growth of the potatoes. Several insiders report that the harvest of early table potatoes is approximately 10 to 14 days behind other years.

First to be grubbed up
In Germany, table potatoes are already being harvested on a small scale, mainly for home sales and for local buyers. The first early potatoes from the greenhouse are also slowly arriving on the market in the Netherlands. The new potatoes grown under cloth will take a little longer to arrive, although some growers report that the first batches for home sales are already being harvested. However, the bulk of the early table potatoes that are now on the market come from Southern Europe and Egypt.

French fries potatoes 3 weeks behind
According to several traders, the early chip potatoes have suffered more delays than table potatoes. Planting has gone reasonably well in the most important growing areas in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. The soil structure was good and rain did not cause any problems early in the season. But due to the cold, the potatoes did virtually nothing during the first weeks in the ground. The potatoes on the early plots are now up.

Insiders are currently talking about a growth lag of approximately 3 weeks compared to last year in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. "There is enough moisture in the ground, but now the temperature remains," according to a source. But that is also coming. Higher temperatures around the long-term average for this time of year are expected from the end of this week. Several insiders expect that the early chip potatoes will then be able to catch up.