It goes without saying that there is a lot to experience on the potato market. Nevertheless, the price jump that PotatoNL makes today – Monday 8 May – comes as a surprise. Particularly in the export market, potatoes suitable for peeling are in great demand. The French fries industry has no choice but to follow suit.
For the first time in its history, PotatoNL records potato prices of €50 per 100 kilos. This concerns potatoes suitable for fries, almost all of which are of the Agria variety. The tasty variety is suitable for cutting fresh fries and is very popular in the export market.
"There is a very good demand for Agria, especially in Spain and Switzerland," says PotatoNL discussion leader Watze van der Zee. "Several lots have been traded for €50 and this amount is also regularly offered by buyers. These are very good lots of top quality and stored in crates. In Spain, the exceptional drought is a factor, which creates a high demand for potatoes. ."
French fries potatoes must be included
This means a jump of €7 compared to a week earlier in category 2. The denominator fresh fries shows an increase of €5. Category 1 is also increasing, but it is doing a little more slowly with an increase of €2,75. The ceiling there is now €44, although it is known that €45 is also widely offered. The listing of fast food varieties such as Innovator and Markies leaves PotatoNL almost untouched. That of Fontane and Ramos will increase by €2,50, to €40 - €43,50.
"Processors have no choice but to go along with this market, which is also reflected in the listing," says Van der Zee. “The demand and price for chips remains very good, meaning factories can afford to pay such amounts.” He does not dare to say with certainty whether the current upward movement will continue. "In the onion market we have also seen that the price first shot up and then stabilized, before falling again. A stabilization in the potato price in the short term is therefore not inconceivable."
Backlog
For potato processors, the position in the country plays a major role. The first week of May has finally offered a chance to plant lots of potatoes, whatever they are happened. However, progress remains considerably behind previous years. This is certainly the case in surrounding countries. Despite the fact that the weather is currently growing - with sufficient moisture and temperature - the gap will not be quickly reversed. The necessary parties are therefore secured in both the short and medium term, although the group of growers who can benefit from this is becoming increasingly smaller.
To draw another parallel with the onion market; It surprises many people how many onions are still left in sheds. Are we going to experience something similar with potatoes? On the other hand, if the price already rises to almost €45 in early May, what does June have in store? There is no question of cooling at the moment, although a lot depends on the growing season.