Potato: Latest news from Egypt, Pakistan and Tunisia

50% of the potato exports of the Egyptian company Agricultural Supplying Products Company (APC) are currently going to Russia, with the rest being shipped to Europe and the Arab countries. According to Ismail Zakaria Khalil, “The quality and productivity of Egyptian potatoes is really good due to the country’s weather and cultivation standards. Last year, APC produced around 635,000 tonnes and this season we expect a similar volume.”

He believes that the position of Egyptian potatoes in the global market will be good this season. “As a result of the ban, Russia will not take any potatoes from Europe and this will most probably mean increased demand for Egypt. While Russia is hampered by an unstable currency, which also affects prices in the Egyptian domestic market, the campaign should still be good.”

For the Pakistani company, Al-Rafique Enterprises, the main production areas are in the Punjab province. “We normally start harvesting by late December or early January, so this year’s season is already finished. Some of the production is placed in cold storage and used throughout the whole year,” explains Exports & Business Development Manager Muhammad Riaz.

He affirms that production volumes were huge this year, although growers suffered the impact of the rainy season in February and March. “This caused delays in the harvest and a part of the production was destroyed or affected by diseases, but we still had good volumes and a very good quality, both for the domestic market and for export,” he affirms.

Although no final data are available yet for the current season, Muhammad states that approximately 30 to 40% of the company’s production is devoted to export. “Our major export markets are currently Russia, Sri Lanka and Malaysia, and we are also entering the Middle East, as Saudi Arabia has reduced its production over the past two years.”

When it comes to the Russian market, Muhammad says that the number of allowed exporters has increased. “Last year, only 7 exporters were allowed to export to Russia and now it is double that figure, with exporters. On the other hand, we also face strong competition from Egypt, Bangladesh and India.”

In terms of prices, Muhammad assures that they are declining worldwide, and that they are in direct competition with Bangladesh in this sense. “However, Pakistan has great domestic consumption and also regional trade with neighbouring countries, so it does not suffer much of an impact from it.”

Muhammad predicts that “in June and July, with the holy month of Ramadan, there will be huge demand for potatoes, so the bumper crop should help during these months. If demand was low, Pakistani domestic consumers will enjoy low prices for quality potatoes.”

The first part of the potato season for the Tunisian firm Alyssa Fruits was far from satisfactory, as according to Walid Gaddas, “Production was really low and prices extremely high (500 to 600 Euro per tonne), while in Europe prices were extremely low (50 to 60 Euro per tonne in France) due to the impact of the Russian ban, so it was complicated to do business in Europe and sales took place mostly in the domestic market.”

However, for the second part of the campaign, which will start in May, the situation is likely to change. “This is a time when we normally have a good production, and prices in Europe should also increase, so our prospect for the second part of the season is that it will be much better than the first.”

The potato varieties marketed by Alyssa Fruits during the early season ( January to March) are the Bellini and Nicola, while for the spring crop (May-June) the main ones are the Spunta and Bellini. As for markets, Walid affirms that “We’ll do something in Europe, but we’ll focus more on the African and Middle East markets.”

Walid explains that, this year, Tunisia has had to import potatoes because the volume available in the market was too low. “Three weeks ago, shipments started to arrive from Egypt and France, and such imports will continue until the new crop is ready, around early May, with which I hope we’ll be able to supply both the export and the local market.”

 

For more information:

 

Ismail Zakaria Khalil
Agricultural Supplying Products Company (APC), Egypt
Tel 002012-2243-7290
info@apc-egypt.com
www.apc-egypt.com

Muhammad Riaz

Al Rafique (Pakistan)
Cell: +92 (0)300 477 4810
Tel: +92 (0)48 372 0795
Fax: +92 (0)48 372 2789
E-mail: export@alrafique.com
Web: www.alrafique.com

Walid Gaddas
ALYSSA FRUITS (Tunisia)
email: info@alyssafruits.com
tel: 00216-29-325-343
www.alyssafruits.com
Facebook : AlyssaFruitsTunisia
Twitter : ALYSSAFRUITS