W7: Weekly Common & Sweet Potato Update
Potato
Canada
Prince Edward Island Seed Potato Growers Hopeful for Compensation Soon
The federal government pledged to compensate seed potato growers who lost their crops in 2022 when borders were closed to their sale. They are confident that the payment will arrive this month. In the fall of 2021, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency stopped shipping table potatoes and seed potatoes after discovering potato warts in certain Island areas. That put an end to 20 years of effective insect control.
Belgium
Belgians Just Keep Craving Dutch Potatoes
Belgium has already purchased 227K MT of Dutch potatoes since the start of this marketing season in July 2022. Almost 80K MT more than over the same period of the previous season. The German purchase, though, is still disappointing. 31K MT of Dutch potatoes has already been imported into the nation, down from about 17K MT the previous season. Outside Europe, the African country of Senegal is an important buyer of potatoes from the Netherlands. The purchase of more than 2K MT in January brings the total to 33K MT so far.
Supply of Free Potatoes Limited in Belgium
At the beginning of February, the Belgian potato stock for the harvest in 2022 was comparable to earlier years. The proportion of free potatoes is somewhat lower, though. As of 1 February, the estimated potato stock in Flanders and Wallonia was 2.44MMT. This stock represents about 68% of Belgium's total stored potato production and is comparable to the five-year average. About 21% of the potatoes in Belgian potato warehouses, or slightly more than 500K MT, are still available for free sale.
Ireland
The Irish Farmers Association (IFA) has issued a warning that as the planting season approaches, many farmers in Ireland are having difficulty due to the high cost and limited supply of land for planting. The IFA counsels farmers not to overpay for land to avoid jeopardizing the viability of their crops.
Hungary
The Supply of Hungarian Grown Potatoes Has Run Out
The last shipments of domestically produced potatoes didn't arrive in stores until the beginning of February, despite the National Potato Product Council's experts had previously anticipated that they would run out by January. Even though traders began bringing in the anticipated volume of imported potatoes in December, if this commodity is kept at the official price, there may even be a supply issue as this results in a substantial loss on the traders' end.
Ukraine
Ukrainian Farmers Are Reducing the Area Under Potatoes
Both the market for and demand for potatoes have dramatically declined. The population's houses also expanded their potato-growing plots throughout the previous growing season. The weather in 2022 helped produce a pretty large crop of potatoes, but the autumn rains reduced the quality of the tubers. All of these things brought prices down. Although it is still high, the demand for potato seeds has decreased since 2022. At least 50% of imported seed potatoes in prior years were of the processing variety, such as those used for potato chips, French fries, and starch. Today, imported pure starchy types are scarce. The volume of fresh and chip types in the total share of imports dramatically decreased.
South Korean Potato Production Continues to Decline
In 2022, the number of potatoes produced in South Korea declined by 9.5% to 510K MT. Despite a yearly tariff quota of 4K MT, it is anticipated that domestic Korean potato output will gradually fall over the upcoming years, which could create additional opportunities for imported US potatoes. Due to rising demand for prepared potato products, which have historically accounted for the majority of Korean potato imports, Korean potato consumption is predicted to rise by 2.5% in 2023. Due mostly to the high demand for frozen chips in the food industry, Korean imports of potatoes and potato products grew by 17% to 227K MT. Following a rise in market prices the previous year, the output volume and planted area for fall potatoes are anticipated to increase by 11.3% and 1.3%, respectively, in 2022. The high-altitude potato area, which accounted for 20.9% of the total production in 2021, is expected to decrease by 5% to 3,690 hectares due to labor shortages.
Spain
The National Production of Potato in Spain Drops for the First Time of 2MMT
According to the most recent Progress of Areas and Productions Map from November 2022, Spain has 63,591 hectares of potato cultivation, with 1.94 MMT harvested. Spanish exports through November 2022 were 345,885, with a value of USD 138.87M (+22%), an increase of 11% over the same month in 2021.
Indonesia
Indonesia Buys German & US Potatoes, Imports Rise Crazy
In January 2023, Indonesia will import a variety of goods, including potatoes. According to the Central Statistical Agency (BPS), import data for specific food commodities shows that 7,160MT of potatoes were imported at the start of 2023, up 282.81% YoY. Yet, when contrasted with the actuality of potato imports in December 2022, which amounted to 7,690MT.
Morocco
The Moroccan Government Prohibits the Export of Tomatoes, Onions and Potatoes to Africa
Moroccan exporters denounced the government today for preventing the export of onions, potatoes, and tomatoes to countries in Africa as a response to the rise in the prices of these items.
Sweet potato
Europe Wants More Organic Sweet Potato
New trends in consumption patterns are becoming apparent as health concerns are prioritized, particularly in light of the Covid-19 experience. This can be seen, for instance, in the consumption of sweet potatoes in Europe. Organic sweet potatoes are already a common sight in European stores.
