Northern Ireland's maincrop potato harvest is about 80% complete, though recent heavy rainfall has slowed progress in several areas.
According to Wilson's Country agronomist Stuart Meredith, "The progress made with this year's harvest up to now is on a par with that achieved in 2024. The recent heavy rains have held up harvesting in all areas, but up until now it has been non-stop harvesting for us. As we move into November, there is an increased risk of frosts, so the sooner we get the remaining 20% lifted the better as the quality of the product in the ground can deteriorate quite quickly."
Quality issues
Several quality concerns have been identified within the 2025 maincrop harvest. Meredith explained that bruising remains one of the main issues likely to affect packing yields. "And, again, this is very much a weather-related issue, directly associated with the lack of moisture that we had over the summer months," he said.
As potato crops experienced moisture stress, the dry matter content in the tubers increased rapidly in some regions. "Unfortunately, this leads to black bruises under the skin of the potatoes during the harvesting process," Meredith added. "However, with the higher dry matter comes a flourier, better-tasting potato for the consumer."
Regional differences and yields
Meredith noted that potato yields show a north-south divide due to varying soil conditions. "All potato crops came under significant moisture stress as they were bulking up. This was a direct consequence of the dry summer weather," he said. "However, crops grown in lighter soils, such as those prevalent in south Co. Down, were more badly affected than was the case in places like northern Co. Antrim, where the heavier clay soils are more moisture-retentive."
Across the region, Meredith projects an average yield of 18 tons per acre (44.5 tonnes per hectare), which he described as typical for a normal season. "Our own potato acreage is up slightly this year," he noted. "This reflects our growing commitment to salad potatoes, including the varieties Venezia and Empress. These salad varieties were planted out later than maincrop varieties but harvested at an earlier date."
Market outlook
Meredith said that current prices are strongly influenced by supply and demand. "With around 20% of the potatoes in Northern Ireland and around 40% of Rooster in the Republic of Ireland still to be harvested, it's still too early to predict what the market will do," he said.
Source: Agriland
