NEPG revises 2024 potato hectarage and expects y-o-y production growth

The NEPG (North-western European Potato Growers) forecasts regional potato production in the 2024/25 MY will surpass the 22.7 million tonnes output from 2023/24, due to increased planted hectarage.  The revised NEPG forecast for potato planted area in the EU-4 (Netherlands, France, Germany and Belgium) in 2024is 7% higher year-on-year (y-o-y).  

The Expana Benchmark Price (EBP) for Dutch processing potatoes remains steady month-on-month (m-o-m) at €150/mt, while the EBP for Belgian Fontane potatoes holds at €125/mt. Market players describe the market as ‘stable’, with both buyers and growers awaiting a clearer picture of the 2024 harvest. 

The NEPG reported that farmers faced numerous challenges during the 2024 season. A shortage of seed drove up prices, and many farmers had to rely on cut seed. Persistent and heavy rain during planting and summer meant that plantings were spread beyond a 10 week period, particularly in Belgium and the southern Netherlands, although France and Germany were less affected. 

Most plantings took place in poor soil conditions, with rainfall before, during, and after planting in 2024 causing one of the worst late blight pressures seen in recent years. New or evolving strains of blight required farmers to mix different active ingredients for each treatment, increasing both spray costs and the number of treatments, especially for late-planted fields.