Polish potato growers retreat after prices fall to 4.5 groszy per kilogram

Surplus pushes growers out of the market

Polish potato growers are scaling back production after prices collapsed during the 2025/2026 season, leaving some farmers with returns of only a few groszy per kilogram. Marcin Gryn, a farmer in Lublin Voivodeship, told farmer.pl that he was almost entirely withdrawing from commercial potato production after selling half of his previous harvest to a biogas plant for about 45 zlotys per tonne, equivalent to 4.5 groszy per kilogram.

Gryn plans to retain only two varieties and enough planting material to preserve the option of returning if market conditions improve. He said part of his crop had been contracted to starch plants at about 50 groszy per kilogram, while the uncontracted remainder was sold later for a fraction of that price. The difference reinforced the value of fixing a price before harvest, even when a contract merely covers costs.

Other growers remain under pressure. Piotr Konieczny of the Grassroots Nationwide Farmers’ Protest told WP Finanse that hundreds of thousands of tonnes were still in storage in spring amid production surpluses, weak exports and higher imports. Offers of 30–40 groszy per kilogram for potatoes packed in 15-kilogram bags did not cover electricity, heating and winter ventilation costs, he said.

Expert disputes German import explanation

Wiesław Dzwonkowski told a seminar on Poland’s potato market that the main cause of the price collapse was domestic overproduction, particularly potatoes planted without a secured buyer. According to his estimate, about 1 million tonnes more potatoes reached the market than a year earlier after growers expanded acreage in response to the previous season’s high prices. The starch industry increased purchases by at least 300,000 tonnes, but the wider market could not absorb the remaining surplus.

Dzwonkowski said similar surpluses appeared in Western Europe, where potatoes were also being disposed of at minimal prices. He rejected claims that cheap German imports were primarily responsible for Poland’s downturn. During the 11 months from July 2025 to May 2026, Poland exported about 104,000 tonnes of potatoes and imported approximately 85,000 tonnes, producing its first positive foreign-trade balance in many years, he said.

Gryn offered a different diagnosis. He noted that Poland’s potato area had declined from about 280,000 hectares several years ago to approximately 185,000 hectares and argued that the country was losing customers rather than simply producing too much. He also said additional testing in Poland could extend export procedures by up to two weeks, discouraging buyers in a market where rapid delivery matters.

Contracts offer protection as Ukraine builds capacity

The sharp difference between contracted and open-market prices is becoming central to production decisions. Dzwonkowski said processors generally set contract prices in January and February and may offer premiums for early signing or timely deliveries. Contracts also impose costs, including the purchase of certified seed potatoes, which are substantially more expensive than planting material available on the open market.

Ukraine presents a longer-term challenge for Polish processors. Phytosanitary rules currently prevent imports of Ukrainian potatoes, but the country produces an estimated 15 million to more than 20 million tonnes annually. Dzwonkowski said a large Ukrainian plant under construction was expected to produce starch initially and eventually process about 500,000 tonnes into products including french fries. That capacity is close to half of Poland’s current french-fries production. With about one-fifth of Polish french-fries exports currently going to Ukraine, expansion of Ukrainian processing could reduce demand for Polish finished products even if raw-potato imports remain restricted.