"Same thing goes for the North European productions, with a 4% increase of cultivated areas in France and an even bigger one in Belgium, Holland and Germany. Dry weather in the last few weeks, in France and Germany in particular, combined with high temperatures reduced yields considerably- we are talking about 12-15% on average depending on the area. This new situation is affecting prices of raw material in Northern Europe and, as a consequence, also in Italy."
The current trend
"Following this situation, the market of raw material in Italy and Europe is progressively increasing. The domestic production was below average from the start, in fact there were many warehouses with empty cold storage units. The situation has not shown its effects entirely due to the drop in consumption and it is probable that, thanks to the natural increase in consumption towards the end of September, the market will see prices rising. One thing is certain: stocks are low and therefore we expect good prices in the medium-long term," observes the sales manager.
Processing line at Romagnoli F.lli.
The quality of the produce
"Despite bad weather during Spring, the produce in Italy was of excellent quality and with yields in the norm. Obviously, the decrease in production areas affected total quantities, which were lower than in 2012. We expect the total domestic production to be around 1.5 million tons against a consumption of around 2.2 million tons. It seems that the shelf-life will also be good without particular problems."
"There are all the premises for a good year. At this point it all depends on operators - cooperatives or privates - who often are though not able to fully take advantage of good years as a small decrease in demand is enough to lead to a drop in prices," concludes Roberto Chiesa.
Contacts:
Romagnoli F.lli spa
Roberto Chiesa
Via Quarto di Sopra 1/7
40127 Bologna - Italy
Tel.: (+39) 051 6069616
Fax: (+39) 051 6069608
Email: roberto.chiesa@evita.eu
Web: www.romagnolipatate.it