The supply of early potatoes at the markets is growing every week. Currently, its price ranges from 1.60 to 3.50 euros per kilogram. However, farmers are still cautious in their forecasts: the situation with the harvest varies across different regions of Latvia.
Potato producers met by journalists at the Night Market in Riga acknowledge that the season is challenging. Initially, the crops lacked moisture, and then the rains began, making it difficult to get into the fields and harvest, reports LSM.lv.
"It’s tough right now. It was dry at first, and then it rained for a week. It’s impossible to get into the fields, and harvesting is very hard. The tubers should have been larger, but they are what they are," said one farmer.
At the organic farm Baltbārži in the Jaunpils region, early potatoes are being grown for the first year. Owner Arvis Rasa says that the harvest under the agrofilm has turned out well, and the demand for young potatoes is currently high.
According to him, buyers are particularly interested not only in the potatoes themselves but also in the seasonal set — young potatoes, dill, and the first chanterelles.
The head of the Potato Producers and Processors Union, Aiga Kraukle, notes that some farms have already started digging early potatoes. So far, the tubers are mostly medium-sized, with no large ones yet, but this is considered acceptable for early potatoes.
"There are farms that have already started digging. But some planted potatoes later due to the cold April and will only begin harvesting after Midsummer Day. There is already some progress, and the quantity underground looks quite promising," said Kraukle.
Last year, potatoes were grown in Latvia on nearly six thousand hectares, not counting potatoes for starch and seed potatoes. The area increased by more than 300 hectares over the year.
