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Potatoes: 16/10/2018
Ex-farm potato prices reported to the IFA
Comment: Digging is well under way this week, with many potato growers taking advantage of the mild conditions present to harvest the crop. It is estimated that up to 25% of the main-crop harvest is complete, with this figure on the rise daily. Information on yields at the minute is limited, with variable yields being reported nationwide. Growers are busy at the minute trying to harvest as much as possible while the mild conditions exist and before ground conditions detoriate, as we move into the winter period and shortening daylight hours. Farmers are advised to conduct a yield assessment in their fields in order to identify if any problems exist in the yield, and it may help to prioritise which order the crops of potatoes are dug in. Prices have remained stable over the past week with no major changes to report. Queen stocks are running extremely short and any remaining growers expect to be finished with their stocks of Queens in the next 10 days. Meanwhile in the UK, as the potato harvest progresses, reduced yields and secondary growth continue to be reported from unirrigated crops.
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