Potato Markets Weekly

摘要

Physical market prices in Germany and Britain are showing increasing divergence, indicating possible differences in marketable supplies for the season. There are more British reports of above-average wastage and good quality white varieties for packing are becoming short; the higher prices are however bringing a trickle of supplies out of store. Belgian prices are also improving while the French market is static. We have revised our GB harvest down to 5.623mt, a recovery of only 1.7% on last year. The long term decline in Italian potato production has levelled out since 2002 and this year's harvest is provisionally estimated at 1.838 million tonnes, 2.8% up on last year. The Czech harvest is put at 0.785mt, 13.4% larger, while there is a report thatAustrian production could be 20% down on 2006. Although there are still no price and production statistics from the Netherlands, the first area and yield estimates should at last be published this Thursday. Meanwhile the April 2008 RMX Hanover processing contract price is stable at 125/tonne, the London contract is showing an increasing premium but there could be some further drift in the German ware contract. Spanish prices are continuing to fall towards 2005 levels, with the weighted average for theweek to October 14 being quoted by MAPA at EUR 167.2/tonne. Polish prices are steady but at half last year's levels and are also well down on October 2005. There has been a renewed surge in the value of the Zloty following Sunday's election. UK fry imports continued to rumble in July while Dutch exports of ware and processing potatoes in September, according to trade association data, amounted to 58 474t compared with 38 500t in September 2006; a full report will be included in next week's issue. TheUS Department of Agriculture has revised its trade data and re-allocated tonnage and value figures for shipments to the UK from the ware category (Harmonised System code 070190) mainly to a sweet potato export category (HS 07142020). 2008 is to be the International Year of the Potato; at its New York launch last Friday, FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf commented that developing countries had doubled their production in the past 15 years by increasing their productivity.