A University of Idaho team is innovating agricultural fungicide development through computer molecular modeling. With a focus on potato diseases, they have screened under 60 compounds and identified 15 effective candidates, aiming to introduce novel fungicide classes targeting specific fungal proteins. The project, supported by state and federal grants, could offer growers new crop protection solutions and generate substantial royalties for the university.
The average price of deep frozen French fries in the EU dropped to €1,206 per tonne in October 2025, the lowest in three years, boosting demand in most EU-4 countries. Belgium became the cheapest producer, while Germany had the highest price. Overall, export volumes increased except in France. However, November figures showed a 6.5% decline. Non-EU competition remains challenging, but some markets, like Africa and South America, increased orders.
EUPPA has released its 2025 Facts and Figures fact sheet, quantifying the scale and reach of Europe’s potato-processing sector. The association says its members represent more than 90% of Europe’s processed potato production. The snapshot reports €9.8 billion in annual turnover, 7.5 million tonnes of fries and potato-derived products produced, and 25,000 jobs linked to 51 facilities. It also highlights major export volumes and strong concentration among top exporting countries.
The global French fries market has shifted dramatically, with Asia increasingly dominating due to falling prices and rapidly growing production in countries like China and India. Traditional producers in the US and Northwest Europe face challenges as low-cost exporters capture market share and average import prices in Asia decline. Despite overall robust demand for frozen potato products, structural overproduction in Europe and competitive pricing pressures complicate the landscape, prompting adaptations from established manufacturers.
Thirty years after launching an early potato-industry website in 1996, Lukie Pieterse reflects on how the World Wide Web evolved into today’s always-on digital world – and how the potato community grew with it. The piece traces the shift from scarcity to information overload, arguing that trust, accuracy, and usefulness matter more than ever. At its core is a human story: friendships, mentorships, hard seasons, and a new generation inheriting both powerful tools and bigger responsibilities.
FAO’s FAOSTAT year-end update (dated December 31, 2025) adds fresh 2024 potato totals that show steady global growth. World production rose to 390.4 million tonnes (+0.95%) as harvested area edged up to 17.08 million hectares (+0.49%), lifting average yield slightly. Asia remained dominant with 52.6% of output. Europe increased production despite a small area decline, while Africa’s output dipped marginally as area expanded.
Potato buyers already influence how potatoes are grown through contracts, sustainability scorecards, and incentive programs – but animal welfare still sits mostly outside potato procurement. This article explores how “humane-linked” practices could realistically enter potato supply chains through paid add-ons tied to measurable, verifiable actions such as wildlife-safe agronomy, safer rodent control, responsible amendment sourcing, and transition support. Key 2026 signals include new payment triggers, practical verification, and transparent reporting.
In 2026, the potato sector’s 2025 momentum will be tested by real-world execution. Key watchpoints include whether new processing capacity builds durable grower confidence through fair contracts and technical support; whether storage modernization improves quality, energy efficiency, and safety; and whether sustainability measurement becomes practical and beneficial for farmers.
In 2025, natural disasters and extreme weather reshaped the potato industry across multiple countries – with drought, floods, storms, hail, and water restrictions hitting yields, quality, and timing. The impact was not only fewer tonnes, but greater grade volatility, delayed planting and harvest windows, and higher storage risk from stressed tubers. From Maine’s drought disaster designation to Australia’s supermarket shortages, 2025 reinforced that resilience – water security, adaptable contracts, and stress-tolerant systems – is now a core business requirement.
After publishing a great number of stories on Potato News Today this past year, a clear pattern has emerged: the potato industry’s biggest shift is not only technical or commercial, but conversational. This editorial explores how reporting is moving beyond events toward meaning, placing greater emphasis on people, context, candour, and long-term stewardship – without losing sight of yield, science, or economics.
This article argues that potatoes are entering a new era as science, technology, and market pressures converge. Faster, more precise breeding, emerging genetic tools, and measured agronomy are improving resilience and predictability under climate volatility. Storage is becoming instrumented and professionalized, reducing losses and protecting quality. Processing is expanding into high-value ingredients, while circular models turn by-products into revenue. Automation stabilizes labour-intensive operations.
Entering 2026, the “Age of the Potato” article argues that converging pressures and breakthroughs are elevating potatoes from staple to strategic asset. Climate volatility, food security needs, precision breeding, smarter storage, and expanding processing are unlocking higher yields, nutrition, and ingredients. Beyond food, potato starch and by-products are feeding bioplastics, adhesives, paper, textiles, and pharma-cosmetics pathways. If innovation stays grounded, verified, and inclusive, potatoes can help reorganize food and materials systems.
The potato sector is aging in step with wider agriculture, and the risk is no longer abstract: skills, succession, and operational capacity are thinning across farms, storage, research, and processing. Using verifiable statistics from the U.S., EU, Canada, Australia, and Japan, the article explains why potatoes are especially exposed now, then outlines practical levers for growers, processors, researchers, financiers, and retailers to rebuild a viable pathway for younger entrants globally.
In 2025, Canadian potato production declined by 0.9% to 125.8 million hundredweight due to drought in Eastern Canada, particularly affecting Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick. Alberta remained the largest producer, with a 6.9% increase in seeded area, marking the highest level since 2007. Despite favorable harvest conditions, average yields fell to 321.2 hundredweight per acre nationally, influenced by Eastern drought impacts.