News on Potato Stats, Trade, Prices from the Netherlands

Seed potato breeding and trading company Royal HZPC Group, expects to achieve a strong result for the financial year 2024/2025 (July – June), with global total tonnage potentially surpassing the 1 million ton mark for the first time.

The Consumption Potatoes Working Group (WCA) of the Dutch Agricultural Union (NAV) has made an estimate of the cost price for the upcoming season (2025). In recent years (harvests of 2022, 2023, and 2024), potato growers have already faced a significant increase in costs.

Most potato farmers across the NEPG zone had a lot of luck during October and the beginning of November to finish harvesting, even though some of the harvesting was done in very difficult and expensive conditions.

The 2024 growing season – with the main harvest not yet done – was a difficult, stressful, risky and expensive one for potato growers across the NEPG in North-west Europe. New challenges appear as climate change takes its toll.

Gerard Backx, CEO of the Royal HZPC Group, says there is an imbalance in the Dutch seed potato market. He expects less volume of these potatoes to be available this season. Although there is a good tuber count in many areas, and the harvest should be successful, the wet summer significantly damaged some areas.

The forecasted price for seed potato growers of HZPC Holland for the 2023 harvest is EUR 50.70 (USD 50.20) per 100 kilos. This price is more than 35% higher than the price of the 2022 harvest.

Demand for EU potato supplies remains strong, but supplies are tightening.

Seed potato acreage is shrinking in the Netherlands, Germany, and France.

In season 2023, potato growers in North-western Europe were confronted with difficult weather conditions, a high disease pressure and rising costs.

The Dutch Farmers Organisation (NAV) has again calculated the expected cost price of consumption potatoes for the coming season. The cost shows a slight increase compared to expected cost price for the 2023 harvest.

Due to abundant rainfall, a lot of potatoes in North-western Europe (Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and France) have not yet been harvested. The lifting period was too short to get the potatoes to the stores in good conditions.

The Netherlands' development as an agricultural country and retaining enough farmland. And ensuring potatoes remain in Dutch consumers' minds.

Robert Voskamp of the Dutch company Rola Fresh said that he has never seen the potato market this hot.

The Rabobank report on the US Potato Industry anticipates good prices for the remainder of the 2022/23 marketing year, particularly as the year comes to an end before the new crop harvest begins.

Potato cooperative Agrico announced to its members an average price indication of EUR 35.50 (USD 39.20) per 100 kg for all supplied kilos of 28 mm upwards for seed potatoes from the 2022 harvest.

The Dutch company Altena Potatoes received its first full truckloads of Santé potatoes.

In Northwestern Europe (EU-04; NL, DE, BE, FR) the potato sector is facing a range of issues in the upcoming months. The million dollar question: How will the potato market respond? An analysis by the NEPG.

Potato breeding company HZPC is on track for the expected result of the financial year 2022-2023.