Not fresh, but processed: While the consumption of fresh table potatoes in Germany has recently fallen, more fries and the like have been eaten. At the same time, farmers had to cope with a smaller harvest.
The consumption of fresh table potatoes in Germany has recently declined. In the 2022/2023 financial year, which lasted until June, per capita consumption of fresh tubers fell by four to 16.2 kilograms, as the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE) announced. At the same time, the consumption of potato products increased by two to 37.9 kilograms per capita in the same period.
The BLE explains the further shift from fresh potatoes to processed products, among other things, with the end of the corona pandemic: The demand for French fries and other things has increased because “eating out is increasing again”.
Weather conditions cause poor harvests
Although finished products such as fries, potato salad or chips are enjoying greater popularity, the total consumption of potatoes – i.e. fresh and processed – fell by two kilograms to 54.1 kilograms in the 22/23 marketing year. This trend has been around for several years due to the increasing consumption of rice and pasta: According to BLE, potato consumption has fallen by 28 percent since 1990.
A noticeable decline was also observed on the producer side in the last marketing year. “In particular, the cold and wet spring and low rainfall in the summer led to a small harvest with reduced quality compared to the previous year,” explained the BLE.
Overall, production fell to 10.7 million tons. Nevertheless, domestic producers were able to cover 147 percent of the demand for potatoes in Germany – so the bottom line is that Germany remains a potato exporter.