Just before Christmas, Senegal suddenly emerged as a major buyer of Dutch potatoes. This proved to be no lifesaver, as the quantities currently hanging over the market were simply too large. However, it is a welcome bonus that this sale provides a bright spot in the market for table potatoes.
Senegal is currently experiencing a shortage of potatoes to meet its needs. For a long time, the market could be supplied from local stocks, but the available quantities are insufficient to bridge the gap until the new harvest.
To fill the gap in the market, Senegalese authorities are allowing imports. For Dutch exporters, this is remarkably easy. Next week, onion boats will be partially filled with potatoes. This will quickly send several thousand tons of potatoes to Senegal. An added benefit is that the Senegalese market can absorb the smaller volume of onions more quickly, so additional onions might still be needed later. A win-win situation, so to speak.
In recent months, the lack of demand from Senegal for Dutch potatoes has been a major setback. This was largely due to the large quantities of locally grown potatoes being stored this year. Last year, an attempt was made to do the same with onions, but the experiment failed. The attempt with potatoes, however, yielded much better results. This resulted in smaller sales opportunities for the Netherlands. And that's a real shame in a year when potatoes are so incredibly cheap here.
In time for January 1st
All in all, there's a very limited window this year when large quantities of potatoes can reach Senegal. The border closes on January 1st. This means that shiploads can still arrive next week. After Wednesday, boats, which are easily eight days away, won't be able to dock in Dakar before January 1st.
In the months up to and including October this year, just over 3.000 tons of potatoes were exported to Senegal. In the same period last year, that figure was over 11.000 tons. In the two months that followed, another 20.000 tons were shipped. That quantity will certainly not be reached this year.
Still, the few thousand tons going to Senegal are a welcome bonus. The market has responded well here as well. Prices for African-suitable ware potatoes in sizes 45 to 70 millimeters have risen slightly to 9 to 10 cents per kilo. While not shocking prices, they are a nice boost just before Christmas.
The second bright spot in the potato market this week is Royal Avebe's commitment. The starch company has announced to its members that all potatoes registered for the autumn survey will be collected. A base price of €1 per tonne will be paid for the so-called C potatoes, which fall outside the delivery rights for A and B potatoes. This is one less problem for growers who don't know where else to send their potatoes this year. And for the cooperative, this is an opportunity to offer its members some support.
Green potatoes
Finally, let's return to last week's article here. It concerns the comments about the poor quality of potatoes in supermarkets. Quite a few green potatoes were spotted in bags in several supermarkets. A new round this week is encouraging.
It would be too good to be true that anything has actually changed, but this week only good batches have been observed in the supermarkets. A colleague here at Boerenbusiness This afternoon, she underscored this point with a photo of a nice stack of packaged potatoes at the local supermarket. And those potatoes were even on sale: two 3-kilo bags for €3,99. A great opportunity to pick up an extra bag.