OH NO: the price of fries is going up even more
Snack bar owners are being forced to raise their prices yet again. Because potato yields are once again lower than in previous years, combined with higher energy prices, fries and croquettes are already more expensive than before. But it doesn’t stop there. There are more reasons why your fries keep getting more expensive.
At last, the sun is shining, but what a lot of rain we’ve had this spring! It’s not only been a disaster for the average mood, but also for the potato harvest. It was downright poor, resulting in high prices. Potatoes have never been this expensive. And a portion of fries wasn’t exactly cheap to begin with.
Fancy some fries?
In 2022, research by the Association of Professional Fryers (ProFri) showed that the price of a medium portion of fries without sauce had already increased by 32 cents compared with 2021. Research by Nobudget showed that in 2022, we paid an average of €2.44 for a portion of fries. It seems fries are now becoming a luxury product. The average price for fries without sauce is rising from €2.50 to €3!
The price increase is not solely due to expensive potatoes, by the way. We already mentioned rising energy prices, but don’t forget the increased personnel costs, containers, transport and all the other links in the chain. And there are also policy measures driving up the price.
Mountain of potatoes
One of the new policy measures concerns the obligation for growers to vary the planting of crops on sandy soil. Every farmer will have to deal with this, including potato growers. This mandatory rotation also means that a maximum harvesting date is being set for potatoes intended for fries. They must harvest their potatoes before 1 October.
This means that larger quantities of potatoes arrive at fry producers all at once—and you guessed it, that entire mountain of potatoes also has to be stored, which costs money. Together with all the other rising prices, that is why you will now—and, it is feared, in the future as well—pay an even higher price for fries, says industry organization BO Akkerbouw.
Also read:
- Why you should never order large fries at McDonald’s
- Out with the cheese board, here’s the fry board
- How to: friettafelen
Source: Misset Horeca, NOS
