The main European potato producing countries reduce their harvest by 20% compared to the previous year.

According to NEPG (North-Western European Potato Growers), less than 20 million tonnes of potatoes have been produced this year. This significant figure is related to the great drought suffered and the dramatic climatic changes throughout the harvest season. Among the data given by the NEPG in its monthly report, they estimate that the yield in the 4 main producing countries has been the lowest in the last decade, reaching 13.1% difference in the average of 5 years. In the case of Belgium the decrease has been even more drastic: 29% difference over the previous year.

In addition, not only has the quantity of potato production been affected, this year the size of the tubers have also suffered climate change making them smaller and that the quality, consequently, has also worsened. The entire potato chain has been affected, from growers to the final consumer. You can read in the following article: https://potatomarket.com/french-fries-victims-of-the-drought-in-europe/?lang=en  how this year’s production has affected the consumption of French fries.

According to the NEPG this year we have found the lowest figure in the last 10 years but demand has increased and the price at the moment is going to remain high and it is expected that for the 2019 season the availability of some earlier varieties is going to be a challenge because the price is going to have a significant increase.