Australian potato growers angry over import of Dutch french fries by Woolworths

Australian potato growers are fuming at Woolworths' importation of its "home brand"french fries from the Netherlands.

A grower, who did not wish to be named, said Woolworths was "notorious"for overlooking Australian growers to source cheap product from overseas.

"They're worse thanColes,"the grower said.

"It's for the short-term gain of these companies and when our dollar (drops) there may not be a local industry here to take up the slack."

Coles says 80 per cent of its house brand fries are from Australian growers, with the remainder from New Zealand.

Ausveg chief executive Richard Mulcahy said he was "dismayed"when he was unable to find an Australian packet of frozen vegetables at a Woolworths store recently.