Next week will be marked by the arrival of the first early potatoes in Seville, following the start of the harvest of the extra-early potatoes of Malaga. "The weather conditions have been very favourable for potatoes in Seville, whose campaign will kick off at the usual time," explains Javier Boceta, producer and exporter of potatoes. "In Cartagena, Murcia, the harvest will be delayed, as the growers have had to wait because of the abundant rains at the time of the planting."
According to the producer, the acreage devoted to potatoes has increased this year, "although it is difficult to know to what extent," he points out. This year, the acreage has been recovering after the hard years of the recession, although it is still far from the level of 10 years ago.
"Consumers no longer think about the recession, and although it may be hard to believe, potatoes were actually one of the products most affected by it." During all these years, Spain has been importing large volumes of potatoes for storage from France at ridiculous prices, a factor that has caused the planted area in Spain to fall sharply, from the 100,000 hectares of 2008 to about 70,000 hectares now," explains the producer.
The demand for new potatoes is starting to recover and the product is increasingly more demanded in Spain, where the consumer is willing to pay more for a quality potato.
The first potatoes will be sold in the domestic market and exports are expected to start from the beginning of May, with good prospects in terms of demand in Europe. "This year we expect a very good campaign, with high demand on the part of the European markets, since supply is very scarce at the moment and prices for old French potatoes for storage are high, ranging between 25 and 36 cents per kilo without taking transport into account."
Early Spanish potatoes compete against Egypt and Israel, which arrive earlier to the market. "Those are much tastier potatoes than the old French potatoes, although the culinary qualities of Spanish potatoes are superior, as during the months that potatoes are planted in those countries it is still too cold. European retailers are already looking forward to the arrival of Spanish new potatoes," concludes the producer and exporter.