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NEPG: only 6 percent fewer potatoes in EU4
With a potato production of 21,2 million tonnes, the yield in the EU-4 countries is only 6% below the 5-year average. The yields do not seem so bad, but the increased acreage also influences this figure. It is also striking that the average potato production has been decreasing for years.
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Choose the subscription that suits youThe Northwestern European Potato Growers (NEPG) released these figures. According to the organization, the yield in the EU-4 countries is less low than expected, but the regional differences have never been so great before. For example, there are hectare yields of approximately 30 to 65 tons or higher, with irrigated plots showing a significant increase this year. In Belgium and France the yield is disappointing. There are growers in areas who have harvested so little that they cannot fill their contract. In Germany, growers from the north and west in particular achieved an average yield, the south was below average. Dutch growers achieved an above-average harvest.
Belgium harvests 17% less
The area, which is 1,7% above the average in the EU-4, partly compensates for the decline in potato production. This means that the hectare yields are slightly lower. For example, Belgium harvests an average of 38,9 tons per hectare, 15% less than the 5-year average, and France and Germany follow with 10,4% and 5,8% respectively. With 48 tons per hectare, the Netherlands actually achieves 1,3% more than the 5-year average. With these hectare yields and this area, the calculation results in 6% fewer potatoes in the 4 EU countries.
Structural decline
It is striking that the average hectare yields of these 4 countries have decreased in recent decades. To clarify this trend, the NEPG has listed all 5-year averages since 2010. The 5-year average of the period 2010-2014 starts at 49 tons per hectare and decreased to 45 tons in the period 2017-2021. NEPG cites climate change and declining soil quality as reasons for these declines.
Another factor that every grower has to deal with is the increased cost price. Contract prices must rise with costs to prevent growers from growing fewer potatoes and ending up with a shortage in 2023-2024, the NEPG states. A possible solution given by the organization is to link contract prices to cost price indicators. Contract prices increase or decrease with a series of price indexes for fertilizer, energy, crop protection, etc. This way a fair price is determined for the potatoes.