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Potato prices to soar even more due to low harvest

Johannesburg – The low potato harvest will see potato prices rise for the next four weeks to between R5 per kilogram and R6/kg.

This is according to the Agri Trends paper published by Absa on Wednesday. The delay in rains is also contributing to the high prices of agricultural products.

“Potato plantings in the eastern Free State need rain. Due to the uncertainty on the future outlook for rain, some producers in the Highveld region limited their exposure to potato production by planting less,” the report stated. The lack of water irrigation impacts negatively on yields.

Wessel Lemmer, senior agricultural economist at Absa, explained that the majority of crops are produced in irrigation conditions, but production levels differ from area to area.

The potato production felt the impact of the drought which, coupled with increasing demand from consumers, has driven up prices.

Vegetable prices: what to expect

Over the past week, the price of tomatoes soared to a record high of R15/kg. However this is expected to decrease, stated the report. Low rain levels have not fed through to prices yet, and tomatoes are expected to trade between R8 and R10/kg for the next three months.   

Carrot prices peaked during the past two weeks at R4/kg, but since then prices declined to between R2.50/kg and R3.50/kg. Produce volumes are expected to remain high as the impact of low rainfall was not severe on carrots, explained Lemmer. Volumes started to pick up in dry conditions. Carrots normally rely on borehole or underground water sources, he said.

The prices are expected to continue on a low trend, but quality may be impacted by unexpected wet weather conditions and hail damage. “If it’s too wet, there will be a problem with the quality of carrots,” he said.

Vegetable prices: Fresh produce market (Averages for the Pretoria, Bloemfontein, Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban markets) 

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