APF Eriva: 'Don't sell below 20 euros'

The fries potato pool from APF Eriva sets an average sales price of €19,50 per 100 kilos on week 13. This concerns the pool without pre-sales. The presale pool only includes a small volume at the company.

The prices mentioned apply to fries potatoes, 40 millimeters upwards with 60% 50 millimeters or larger and 360 grams underwater weight. A further €100 fee will be deducted from the stated price per contract.

Innovator above average, Fontane below
For the Innovator variety, the price in week 13 amounts to €20,00. Fontane is at €19,00 and Challenger uses the average price. Lady Anna and Marquis, among others, have a small plus. The largest breed premium is at Agria: €2,05. This brings the price of this variety to €21,55 per 100 kilos.

"Agria has clearly performed better throughout the season," says pool manager Martin de Visser. "During the harvest it became clear that there were many quality problems, especially due to hollow potatoes. As a result, good quality was in particular demand." Switzerland has created a solid foundation in the market. Ultimately, the previously expected problems due to these quality problems were not as bad as expected. notices that the markets in the entire potato sales sector have returned to a normal level after two years of corona. This means that peeling plants can operate at full capacity. Festivals, events and company canteens once again demand fresh fries.

Finished potatoes
Prices for Innovator start in week 45 at €17,50. On week 1 this is €18,50 and at the end of the season the pool amounts to €21,50 for delivery in week 25. "We are currently still delivering the last potatoes," says De Visser. "It is a market that changes hourly, but ultimately all potatoes go into French fries production."

“The sales season started moderately with sales prices around €13,” he continues. "Given the circumstances earlier in the year, we still assumed a minimum price level of €20. We tried to stick to that and only trade that came close to that. That was reasonably successful. It does mean that we We sold little volume at the start of the season. Half of the pool volume was traded in February, March and April. The cash settlement quickly increased from €15,50 to €20,90 from January. We then carried on. From the start In May things got bad and sales were very difficult. Factories chose to process almost exclusively contract potatoes."

Gap between old and new harvest
Both the futures market and the physical market ultimately peaked just above €25. However, it was difficult for the pool managers to sell potatoes at that level, De Visser notes. "The connection between the old and new harvest seemed to be perfect. Due to drought and heat, we now know that things will turn out differently. Many important cultivation areas have been very dry for a long time. We do a relatively large amount of business in Germany. The primeur cultivation there was on time , but the bulk that should come afterwards has been delayed. As a result, we are now seeing more demand for old potatoes again."

Contrary to the company's expectations, the potato area in the Netherlands will not shrink this year. Yet there is no major growth in the pool volume. "In the clay areas, the cultivation plan is full and there is a lot of competition from other crops. In Flevoland, there are growers who focus on seed potatoes or start growing more widely. It is also difficult for consumer potato cultivation to compete with the high rental prices charged for tulip cultivation. paid."

'The coming weeks will be crucial'
The next six weeks will be crucial for the potato market, De Visser thinks. Will it remain dry and hot or will precipitation fall in time? The company will not change the design of the pool. The average pool price over ten years - with the result of the 2021 harvest year - is €16,16 per 100 kilos. De Visser: "With a price of €20 for Innovator in week 13, growers will not go home cheering. It is an absolute minimum that you need today when you take into account the enormous cost increase. We remain committed to achieving a cost price with a plus."

“It is difficult to predict what the future holds,” he continues. "That has always been the case, but it is becoming even more difficult. Patterns in the market that we know from the past are changing. Sales were disrupted by the corona crisis, but they are back on track. Now the war in Ukraine, the availability and price of gas and the overall cost price increases for both growers and processors in the market. The cost price will undoubtedly continue to increase in the coming years. The potato price must therefore increase to ensure that factories have sufficient potatoes."