Kartoffeln News, 09/22/2023

Prices for processing potatoes remain under pressure. Belgapom lowered the price for Fontane to 10 euros/dt, while the previous week it was still 12.50 euros per deciton. Here and there, Belgian factories call up free goods, but overall the chip producers can utilize their capacity with contract goods from the current harvest. Deforestation in Belgium is making good progress. However, the market is experiencing some relief from good export demand. Dealers from Southern Europe and Eastern Europe in particular are active in Belgium and shop here. There is also an increasing number of inquiries from Africa. Belgium's factories have significantly expanded their overall capacity for producing French fries in the last year. In 2022, around 18 percent more potatoes were processed here at 6.2 million tons. Overall, the volume of processing in Western Europe has increased. While before Corona there was an average of 15.6 million tons of potatoes, in 2022 17 million tons could be processed. A processing volume of 18 million tons is expected for 2023. In Germany the picture is similar to that in Belgium. However, there is hardly any trade in free quantities here; both fries producers and chip manufacturers only use contract goods.Flakes and granules manufacturers also primarily call off contract goods. Market participants certainly expect increased demand for free quantities in later months. However, this is currently not expected. There has been little change in the basic market orientation of the food market . As the main harvest progresses, prices continue to fall. The federal average for waxy varieties is currently 32 euros; predominantly waxy varieties are valued somewhat more favorably.