Preliminary figures released this week by the German Federal Ministry of Agriculture indicate a potentially record-breaking potato harvest for 2025, the best in over two decades. The projections suggest a yield of 13.4 million tonnes – a 5.3% increase compared to the already robust 2024 harvest and 17% above the multi-year average. The last comparable result occurred in the year 2000.
Contributing to this potentially exceptional result is a significant expansion of cultivated area. Potato farming acreage has risen by 6.7% compared to the previous year, now reaching a total of 301,000 hectares – the largest area dedicated to potato cultivation since the turn of the millennium.
Beyond the wider growing area, yield per hectare is also expected to play a key role. Projections estimate an average yield of approximately 44 tonnes per hectare across the country, representing a slight increase of nearly 5% above the multi-year average, although marginally below the extremely favorable results achieved in 2024 (-1%).
Favorable growing conditions throughout the year have underpinned the positive outlook. Following a sufficiently wet winter, a warm and dry spring facilitated planting under excellent conditions and at the usual timeframe. While localized rainfall deficits occurred subsequently, the early harvest of new potatoes was possible and irrigation was employed where feasible. A period of dry and hot weather in May and June was followed by beneficial rainfall in July, easing concerns about moisture levels, although it also heightened disease pressure.
The anticipated substantial potato harvest has already begun to influence market dynamics. Producer prices for early potatoes in 2025 started at a notably lower level compared to previous years and growers currently receive approximately one-third less for standard potatoes from the main harvest compared to 2024. Consumers have also benefited, with supermarket prices for standard potatoes approximately 15% lower in August 2025 than in August 2024.
