The start of the new potato harvest in Seville has suffered some delays due to heavy rains, although it is estimated that significant volumes will start arriving by the middle of next week without interruptions.
For this campaign, what stands out the most is the quality, which is expected to be better than last year, although yields will not be as high as expected due to the ups and downs of the weather, as after an episode of frost there were heat waves and then heavy rainfall.
"We will have a good, high quality harvest," states José Peláez, manager of Sevillana de Patatas and president of the Early Potato Commission of Europatat. "Although the yields have not been as good as expected this season, there is a slight increase compared to the previous campaign, when the weather affected far more crops and their quality and the acreage was also reduced," he explains.
According to José Pelaez, the acreage this campaign will not record the sharp fall of the past ten years. "Growers are starting to have better prospects about the profitability of this crop, which is why they have planted a little more this year after almost ten years of annual reductions in the acreage."
The new Spanish potato is arriving in a market with high prices due to the low availability of potatoes from central Europe and their poor quality. "Countries like Israel, Egypt or Malta have been shipping new potatoes to European markets at expensive prices due to the demand for quality potatoes, since Central European potatoes, especially those from France, have been expensive and their quality in recent months has been mediocre. This situation is allowing us to enter a market with interesting prices," explains José Peláez.
France starting to take an interest in Spanish potatoes
The new potatoes of Andalusia are shipped in equal parts to the domestic market and to export destinations in Europe. "Our main market in terms of volume is Germany, and it should be noted that more and more shipments are being made to Belgium. The Netherlands and the Scandinavian countries are also on the list of important destinations, while shipments to the UK have dropped significantly in the last season due to the severe protocols established for the treatment of the epitrix."
It should be noted that France is starting to take an interest in Spanish new potatoes. "France is known to be a protectionist country that seeks to supply itself with its own products, but large distributors are realising that the quality of potatoes for storage becomes significantly worse when the product is stored for so long and this has repercussions on sales."