Germany: Consumers Pay 15.1% More for Potatoes Than a Year Ago as Harvest Advances
Key takeaways
- 15.1% more is paid by German consumers than in Sept 2025
- 28.77 euros per 100 kg is the average producer price
- 30 euros per 100 kg is the REKA table potato price in NRW
- 10.4 million tonnes is the German 2026 crop estimate
Why it matters
- For farmers
- Grade out wireworm-damaged and small tubers before storage. Sell part of the crop now while producer prices hold near €29 per 100 kg.
- For traders
- Plan for weaker retail volumes as shop prices rise 15%. Line up import options for winter in case discounters seek cheaper supply.
- For suppliers
- Promote wireworm monitoring and storage hygiene products, since damage raises storage risk in the south-west.
60-second summary
The shrinking German harvest has now reached the checkout. Shoppers pay about fifteen percent more for potatoes than twelve months ago, and market analysts expect the crop to remain a notable source of food inflation this season. On farms the picture is calmer: waxy table potatoes average close to twenty-nine euros per hundred kilograms nationally, with a slight weekly dip, and the Rhineland REKA quotation eased by one euro to thirty. Lifting continues, and wireworm damage and small tubers weigh on the south-west, while rain slows work in the far north. Retailers and packers face softer volumes at higher shelf prices, and growers must protect stored quality to keep the value. Note that the fifteen percent figure appears only in the weekly federal market report citing AMI; the AMI website confirms the rise but gives no number. Official harvest statistics point to a crop about a quarter smaller than in 2025.
Potato prices in German shops are well above last year. Consumers now pay 15.1% more than in September 2025. The figure comes from the market analysts at AMI. It appears in the weekly potato report of the federal food agency BLE, published on 25 September 2026.
The analysts expect potatoes to remain one of the main drivers of food inflation this season. Their share of food spending is still relatively small. The reason for the rise is simple. This year’s harvest is much smaller, while last year’s crop was much larger.
A separate AMI note confirms the trend. Consumer prices for potatoes, vegetables and butter are rising in September.
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Producer prices hold steady
At farm level, prices are firm but no longer climbing. In week 39, the national average for mainly waxy table potatoes was €28.77 per 100 kg. That is €0.15 lower than a week earlier. Individual prices ranged from €22 to €37 per 100 kg, according to AMI data.
In North Rhine-Westphalia, the REKA table potato price fell by €1 to €30 per 100 kg.
Harvest picture by region
Domestic lifting volumes keep rising, but the harvest is not finished. The range of varieties on sale is widening.
- Bavaria: the table potato harvest is well advanced. Quality problems, mainly wireworm, stay within limits, apart from some severe cases.
- Rhineland-Palatinate: the harvest is nearly complete. Yields are weak and tubers are small. Wireworm increases storage work and risk.
- Lower Saxony: the north-east reports an average harvest despite drought stress elsewhere.
- North Rhine-Westphalia: quality is good and sales of processing potatoes are growing.
- Schleswig-Holstein: rain interrupts lifting, while producer prices stay stable.
Federal statistics put the 2026 potato crop at about 10.4 million tonnes. That is 24.8% less than last year.
Our report on the first official German harvest estimate was published on 26 September.
Why it matters
Higher retail prices show that the small crop is now reaching consumers. This can slow demand for fresh potatoes over the winter. Discounters may push for cheaper imported supply.
For growers, stable producer prices near €29 per 100 kg are far better than last season. But wireworm damage and small tubers will reduce the share of saleable potatoes. Storage losses may decide how much of this price advantage growers keep.
Photo: Potatoes on sale in a grocery store (illustrative). Santeri Viinamäki / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
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What next
The harvest is not finished, and rain is slowing lifting in Schleswig-Holstein. AMI expects potatoes to stay a key driver of food inflation this season. Wireworm damage will shape storage losses and saleable volumes.
Sources
- FreshPlaza.de (BLE-Marktbericht Kartoffeln KW 38–39, AMI) — https://www.freshplaza.de/article/9876481/inlandische-rodungsmengen-stiegen-weiter-an-sortiment-facherte-sich-auf/
- agrarheute Markt (AMI Erzeugerpreise Kartoffeln, KW 39) — https://markt.agrarheute.com/marktfruechte-1/kartoffeln-28
- AMI — Lebensmittelpreise — https://www.ami-informiert.de/ami-maerkte-verbraucher/lebensmittelpreise
Linked in this material
- Country
- Germany
- Companies
- AMI; BLE; REKA
