The IAFE believes that this has not been an easy year for producers; the main reason for this has been the drought suffered and the lower than expected yields.
Across the EU, the area planted in 2015 amounted to 1.64 million hectares, which is 3.2 percent less than in the previous year; as a result, the potato harvest in the EU-28 has decreased by almost 13 percent compared to 2014 and amounted to 52.3 million tonnes, the report says.
In Poland, the area planted with potatoes in 2015 stood at 308 thousand hectares and was about 11 percent higher than last year. Yields are estimated at 217 tonnes/hectares, compared to 278 tonnes/hectares in the previous year and an average of 190 tonnes/hectare for the period between 2006 and 2010. The harvest totalled 6.7 million tonnes and was about 1 million tonnes smaller than in 2014. Compared to the average yield recorded for period between 2006 and 2010, the decrease has amounted to more than 32 percent. Due to a decrease in production, potato prices in Poland are also high, according to the Institute.
Source: farmer.pl