"Germany: "Trade favors imported goods from the Mediterranean"

Producers of early potatoes from Lower Saxony are bitterly disappointed. "With the right varieties, the use of films for earlier harvesting and good production technology, we have done everything we can to offer consumers early potatoes from local fields as early as possible," says Henning Meyer from the early potato producer community in the Burgdorf area. In farm sales, the early tubers also saw good demand, "but now retail blocks the marketing of these potatoes, preferring imported goods from the Mediterranean on its shelves". He sees this as a decision against the desire for regionality by the consumer and even more against the work of domestic potato producers.

"We can deliver any quantity of the potatoes people want, at the exact moment they want," says the potato grower from Immensen. But at the same time, he sees a preference for cheaper Mediterranean goods as a breach of trust towards the customers, who are promised sustainable and regionally produced products in the advertising campaigns of the large food chains. At the same time, the food retailer is placing ever-higher demands on production and quality and is profiling itself through corresponding statements. "At the same time, however, they are pushing up the costs of the farmers as upstream suppliers," says Meyer.

The domestic producers would like to meet their wishes, but in return have to be able to depend on reliable partners. Only in this way can an economically and ecologically sustainable production be maintained. "After a disastrous year for table potato growers in 2017, reliability of sales and good, cost-covering prices are now urgently needed," says Meyer, urging a timely and comprehensive conversion to domestic new potatoes. On the other hand, he fears that many farmers will decide against the new potato in the following years. In the early potato producer community of Hanover, 160 farmers have joined together. On about 2,700 ha they grow new potatoes, making this region the largest North German region for this potato variety.

Source: Landvolk