Leon van den Oord, Jac van den Oord Potatoes, the Netherlands: 'When it's cold, demand shifts to starchy potatoes for mash right away'

It started snowing in the Netherlands on Saturday evening. Many households are, therefore, serving mashed potatoes again.

Leon van den Oord of the Dutch company, Jac van den Oord Potatoes:
 

“Many people were hoarding at the end of last week. But, it's much quieter this week.”

“When it gets colder, it's certainly generally favorable for the potato trade. More people serve hotchpotch dishes. So, sales shift from smaller high-quality potatoes to starchy potatoes. Ware potato sales have been good for some time now.”

“Industry prices are also on the rise. That has, however, taken a long time. We're very eager for the hospitality sector to reopen. We're very strong in that segment. We'd like to see those sales pick up again.”

The first import potatoes are on their way too. Morocco will supply the first early potatoes; Israel will follow.

Leon van den Oord:
 

“It's difficult to predict the size of the supply. Spain has a somewhat lower harvest, but in Israel, the prospects look good.”

“But these are just the warm-ups. The true import potatoes marketing season runs from mid-April to early June. Then things really start moving.”