POTATOES NEWS is expanding its media formats. In addition to articles, videos, interviews and reports from the International Potato Tour, our content is now available to listen to on Spotify.
This new format is designed for farmers, processors, agronomists, exporters, equipment suppliers, seed companies and everyone who follows the global potato industry but does not always have time to read long reports or watch full videos.
Now, the most important topics in the potato sector can be followed in audio format — while driving, working, travelling or preparing for the next working day.
Our new episode focuses on one of the most unusual and dramatic situations in the global potato market in 2026:
Global Potato Crisis 2026: Record Surplus, Negative Farm Prices and a 700% Surge in Potato Futures
The episode examines the structural overproduction of potatoes in Northwestern Europe, especially in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and France. Expanded planting areas, favorable weather and high production volumes have created a major surplus, putting serious pressure on physical potato prices.
In some cases, farm-gate prices have fallen so low that they have reached negative territory. Farmers are being forced to redirect potatoes to livestock feed, biogas production or disposal because storage costs have become too high.
At the same time, financial markets are showing a completely different picture. Potato-related financial contracts and CFDs have reportedly surged by more than 700%, creating a sharp contrast between the real physical market and speculative financial expectations.
This situation raises important questions for the entire industry:
Why can potato futures rise while farmers struggle to sell their crop?
How should growers react to oversupply and market volatility?
What role do storage capacity, processing demand and export logistics play in the current crisis?
How can farmers and processors prepare for a more unstable global market?
The episode also looks at broader risks, including fertilizer supply, logistics disruptions, geopolitical instability and changing trade flows in processed potato products such as frozen French fries.
For the potato sector, this is not just a story about prices. It is a signal that the industry is entering a new phase, where production decisions, storage strategy, contracts, processing capacity and market intelligence are becoming more important than ever.
POTATOES NEWS will continue to follow these developments through articles, video interviews, field reports and now also audio episodes.
You can listen to the new episode on Spotify here:
POTATOES NEWS — global potato industry insights, now available in audio format.
