“In Europe they write ‘for frying’ or ‘for boiling’ on potatoes, we are only going to that”: expert on market problems
28 August 13:34
INTERVIEW
Potatoes traditionally remain one of the staple foods for Ukrainians, and as autumn approaches, many owners are planning their winter purchases. This year’s potato harvest in Ukraine promises to be better than last year’s due to more favorable weather conditions, although regional differences remain significant. "Komersant Ukrainian" spoke to Olga Samoylichenko, Executive Director of the Ukrainian Potato Producers Association, about the prospects of the potato market, optimal timing of purchases and development of the processing industry.
Harvest – better than last year
What will be the potato harvest this year?
It is still very early to talk about whether the potatoes have or have not harvested, because they are just starting to harvest. Now professional potato growers have started digging only early chip varieties, some are starting to dig table potatoes. Therefore, probably, it would be more correct to ask the question about how the potatoes were harvested at the end of September.
In general, we can say that the situation this year is much better than last year, in particular weather conditions. But this is not true for the whole Ukraine. Because, on the one hand, in the south and in the east there was a month without precipitation in some places, and in the west and north-west it rained so much that the water stood at the height of the ridge.
That is, the weather was different, but in general we can say that more favorable than last year. And the harvest is generally expected to be better.
The optimum time to buy is September
And can we talk about when it is better to buy potatoes in order to store them? Are there any terms?
If you are putting in the cellar, or you have some places of your personal destination – unequivocally potatoes are best purchased in September. That’s when the price will be minimized. That’s when everyone will dig up their potatoes at the same time.
Professional growers, say, put their potatoes into long-term storage. But we have a shortage of storage facilities, so potatoes will be mass marketed and their price will be minimal.
Дивіться нас у YouTube: важливі теми – без цензури
Potatoes for boiling and potatoes for frying – there is a difference
There are different varieties of potatoes. Can we divide by varieties, which potatoes are better to buy, conditionally, for a housewife if she wants to make mashed potatoes, or if she wants to bake or fry them?
Yes, potato varieties differ in their purpose. If we talk from a general approach, there are starchy varieties. They are very unpalatable. They have a high starch content and are grown specifically for processing in starch factories.
There are chip varieties, from which chips are made in Ukraine. By the way, all chips in Ukraine are made from potatoes that are grown in Ukraine. These are Ukrainian potatoes. These are also varieties that are not grown on households, because it is a difficult technology, and they also will not taste good when cooking at home.
And then there are table varieties. Each seed company has its own line and it tells you which variety is for what purpose. That is, indeed, there are varieties for cooking, and there are varieties for frying. There are universal varieties.
We have an all-Ukrainian event “Potato Day Ukraine 2025” on Friday, August 29, where 75 varieties of absolutely all seed companies that work in Ukraine will be presented. These are 11 seed companies, representatives, distributors. And there it will be possible to familiarize with the purpose of each variety.
Now in Ukraine is not very developed culture of selling potatoes in stores by purpose. At the same time in Europe, if we go in and look at the European shelves, all potatoes are sold already washed, packed in nets or in bags. And it is labeled “frying” or “boiling”. Ukraine is just moving towards this. Only a few brands now offer such products.
In large retail chains we can find potatoes, on which it is written its purpose. But, you understand – these potatoes must be of very high quality.
In our stores, sometimes you can see some bulk potatoes that are sold with earth, they are a little black, a little spoiled. Why does this happen? Because, most likely, it was grown not by a professional producer, but on households or on some small farms, where the technology is in some way violated. A potato is like a child – you hit it, and a bruise appears on it. If one potato got a virus (and potatoes have viruses), it will lie or grow next to another potato. And like kids in daycare, they will reinfect each other.
It’s a real crop and it’s very difficult, actually, to grow quality potatoes. So if you see a packaged brand name in the store with a destination – it is definitely potatoes that are grown professionally, they will be of good quality. But will cost a little bit more because of all the costs involved.
French fries – why they are not produced in Ukraine
Are there enough factories in Ukraine that process potatoes? If yes, what are their needs?
Yes. There are three areas of processing in Ukraine. The first one is starch. We have two large and one smaller starch plants. And they have enough capacity to process the raw material. They lack raw materials, let’s put it this way.
Why? Because the cost of potatoes for starch is minimal. It costs the least compared to table potatoes. So we produce starch, we have starch producers. This starch is exported not only to Europe, but to all countries of the world. That is, we have a very large export of potatoes. We have starch processing, everything is fine.
The second direction for processing is chips. Chip potatoes are already more expensive than starch potatoes, they are more difficult to grow. This is a certain technology, it requires agronomic support, sufficient uniform irrigation, so that the tuber grows well and stable during its entire period, so that it gains the necessary dry matter.
We also have three large chip plants in Ukraine. They are PepsiCo, Sandora LLC – “Lay’s” chips, Craft Foods – “Lux” chips, and Chipster‘s Club – “Chipster’s”. They are all members of our Potato Growers Association. Our producer members supply products for them, they have long-term contracts.
This is the second big direction of processing. It has been mastered in Ukraine, it is developing, there are capacities. This is a stable direction, which is very important for potato producers, because stable processing is the stability of the potato business. Regardless of price hikes, the cost of potatoes for processing is contracted, the producer knows what he will get. This gives him opportunities for development.
And the third area of processing is the production of French fries and flecks – mashed potatoes. Unfortunately, there is a problem with this in Ukraine now.
These fries that we eat are imported potatoes. In general, we can say that we do not actually have factories for the production of French fries. There is only one very small, very small factory.
At the same time, growing French fries is the most profitable option for producers. These potatoes are the most expensive.
But in order to grow them, you need a lot of water, you need irrigation. Without irrigation, French fries will not grow, because the tuber takes up water, it consists to a large extent of water. So, in order for it to be of sufficient size, it has to be irrigated.
Now there is a war, and building such a plant requires a lot of investment. Recently, this topic has appeared in the information space, but this is a separate conversation.
Читайте нас у Telegram: головні новини коротко
