In France, according to the UNPT, blight pressure remains strong and there are signs of early senesce in some crops.
The first harvest in the Picardy and Beauce regions showed yields down by 5-10 t/ha compared to last year. The harvest is showing strong differences in quality and yield between the different maturity groups.
Trials conducted by the CNIPT and UNPT at the end of July on 202 plots showed average yields of 22.2 t/ha, down 36% compared to the 11 year average of 34.6 t/ha.
The effect of ‘planting date’ is clear with the areas planted in March to April giving an average yield of 29.4 t/ha, while May planted crops averaged 12.6 t/ha.
According to the latest figures from GIPT, 1.09m tonnes of potatoes were processed in French factories from July 2011 to June 2012, against 1.12m tonnes from July 2010 to June 2011 and 1m tonnes from July 2009 to end June 2010. This is a 2% decrease (-23,000 tonnes) compared to last year but up 9.2% (+92,000 tonnes) compared to two years ago. Of the 1.09m tonnes processed this year, 13.5% was contracted and 19% imported.
