Canada: Frozen Fry Shipments to the US Slip 1.5% to 1.119 Million Tonnes as Sales to Mexico and the Gulf Jump
Canadian frozen fry exports to the US fell 1.5% to 1.119 million tonnes in the year to July. The US share dropped to 83.6% from 87.0% two years ago, while sales to Mexico and some Gulf states rose more than 40%, World Potato Markets reports.
Canada is slowly shifting its frozen fry exports away from the United States. Shipments to the US fell by 1.5% to 1.119 million tonnes in the year to the end of July. This comes from World Potato Markets, issue 784 of 8 September 2026.
The US still takes 83.6% of Canadian frozen fry exports. Two years ago the share was 87.0%. Over the same period, sales to Mexico and some Gulf states rose by more than 40%.
Prices help the push
World Potato Markets says lower Canadian prices support the search for new markets. Canadian prices are now similar to those in the EU.
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The report calls the change “not dramatic yet, but detectable”. It links the shift to strained trade relations between Ottawa and Washington. Potatoes and potato products are exempt from the new US duties, as an existing agreement covers them. Companies from both countries operate on both sides of the border.
Why it matters
Canada is the largest supplier of frozen fries to the US. A small shift in its trade changes the balance for processors in North America, Europe and Asia. More Canadian fries in Mexico and the Gulf mean more competition there for European, Indian and Chinese exporters.
Source: World Potato Markets 784, 8 September 2026 (Supply Intelligence Ltd). Figures are taken from the publisher’s summary; they were not checked against Statistics Canada.
Photo: A portion of French fries (illustrative). stu_spivack / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
