The colder weather experienced this week should help to improve the consumption of potatoes at home. Food service demand did see a slight increase over the bank holiday weekend as expected. In the southeast more early varieties such as Home Guard and Premiere are coming onto the market. To date, demand has been described as quite good and quality is also very good. Queens should be fit to dig in the next two weeks. The market is in a different position than it was this time last year when potatoes were very tight.
Across mainland Europe, 10 to 20mm+ of rain in the main potato growing areas, from France through to the Netherlands, has temporarily alleviated drought stress. On the domestic markets, prices for best quality are holding. In the UK, rain has improved the situation on the ground, however, the amount that fell was less than expected in many regions.
