Potato Market Update 4th September

Sales and consumption have picked up this week as holiday season draws to a close. Some earlier planted maincrop continues to be harvested. There are many reports that numbers are disappointing, and yields will be reduced, especially on later planted crops. Quality is reported to be very good.

In the U.K. apart from the western side of the country, conditions are now very dry and irrigation is required to lift but also pre-burn down to reduce dry matter levels. Eary plantings are being lifted into store, with good yields but many later planted crops continue to struggle despite regular irrigation. Unirrigated late planted crops are in many cases poor. D.M. levels are rising "quite quickly" and high tuber number is common.