The area of potatoes in Germany is increasing even further this year than previously assumed. This is apparent from new official figures. A notable shift in varieties is observed. There is significantly less interest in starch potatoes.
When talking about growth in the cultivation of processing potatoes within Europe, the story usually quickly turns to Belgium and (Northern) France. Many processors have established themselves there in recent decades, leading to a logical significant increase in processing potato cultivation.
Area grows significantly
Germany is a country that is not usually mentioned so quickly, despite being the largest potato country within the EU-4. This shadow role may change when considering the movement of the potato area. The fact that it is growing this year has been known for a while, but the increase is much larger than previously thought. New figures from the statistical office Destatis confirm this.
Destatis presents a total area of 289,200 hectares in early August. This is an increase of 24,500 hectares (9.25%) compared to last year. It is the largest area since 2004 and the largest increase in recent history.
Significant expansion in Lower Saxony
Destatis has also released the figures per federal state. Lower Saxony, which showed a slight decline last year, is now making a very strong comeback with an increase of 19,300 hectares (16%). North Rhine-Westphalia - the second on the list - is growing by 4,200 hectares (10%). The third: Bavaria, is the only federal state shrinking, by 2,800 hectares (7.25%). These three federal states together represent three-quarters of all potatoes in the country.
Unfortunately, the statistical office does not disclose the distribution between segments. Insiders can make that estimate. Lower prices for cereals and maize coupled with a good demand for potatoes have certainly had a positive effect, but potato growers are also shifting in segments. In this regard, the starch potato area is particularly affected.
Decline in starch potatoes
This shift is not a big surprise. The area has been decreasing for three consecutive years. In 2023, 55,930 hectares of starch potatoes were cultivated, according to figures from the Bundesverbandes der Deutschen Stärkekartoffelerzeuger (BDS). This was the smallest area in seven years. One-fifth of all German potatoes are starch potatoes, although this proportion is likely to decrease further.
The largest growth is noticeable in processing potatoes, especially in Lower Saxony. What has mainly hindered the growth is the availability of the right varieties. Therefore, according to insiders, table potato cultivation has also increased because there was a better availability of varieties here.
More own seed potatoes
As in other European countries, the cultivation of seed potatoes has also increased this season, by 9% to 18,380 hectares. Planting material of the Fontane variety is one of the strong growers, indicating that the Germans want to be more independent of seed potato supply from the Netherlands. This season, our neighbors received 99,556 tons of seed potatoes, according to NAO figures. That is 21,847 tons (18%) less than the previous season. Thus, in the list of major buyers, it was the big loser last season.
The planting season in Germany proceeded slightly faster than in the countries further along the coast, although it was wet here too. As a result, planting was somewhat delayed. Nevertheless, the start cannot be considered disastrous. This is different fro Bavaria, where many potato fields flooded due to extreme rainfall. Insiders reckon multiple thousands of hectares were lost. This means that the downsize in potato area is actually larger than what the official figures show.
Insiders expect the market to be plagued by an oversupply of potatoes, especially around harvest time. This is mainly the case for Northern Germany.
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