The French organic potato market is at a pivotal juncture. According to the Comité National Interprofessionnel de la Pomme de Terre (CNIPT), the 2025-26 campaign follows a period of significant contraction, with planted area for long-circuit contracted volumes now showing a moderate second-year increase of +5%. This rebound is nuanced, however, driven primarily by a substantial +13% surge in area dedicated to industrial processing, which now accounts for 20% of the organic market. This mirrors a broader trend in conventional agriculture toward value-added processing. While the fresh market area remains stable, the overall outlook hinges on aligning a promising, predominantly domestic (99% French-origin) supply with a consumer demand that must not “run out of steam.”
Achieving market equilibrium will depend heavily on managing both biological and commercial variables. CNIPT reports average but heterogeneous yields for 2025, presenting a supply of good quality. However, a key agronomic challenge has emerged: harvested lots are showing a tendency to sprout faster, necessitating earlier application of storage sprout suppressants—a critical consideration for storage management and quality preservation. On the commercial front, despite steady consumption volumes for fresh potatoes overall, organic penetration remains low, with barely one in ten French households purchasing organic potatoes in the previous campaign. Recent weeks have also seen pressure on free-market prices for growers, highlighting the market’s sensitivity to demand fluctuations, as evidenced by a strong August/September 2024 followed by a weaker October.
The 2025-26 season presents a fragile opportunity for the French organic potato sector to solidify its recovery. Success is not guaranteed by increased planting alone. It requires a dual-focused strategy: First, robust agronomic and storage protocols to manage quality-specific challenges like premature sprouting, ensuring the delivered product meets consumer expectations. Second, and equally critical, is a coordinated industry-wide effort to move beyond price-based competition. The sector must invest in effective consumer communication and value proposition to increase household penetration. The transition from a niche to a mainstream staple depends on transforming the organic potato from a sporadic purchase into a habitual one, securing long-term stability for producers and the supply chain.
