Germany: Starch Processor Keeps 2027 Contract Price at €95/t Despite 10–50% Yield Losses
German starch group Emsland Group will pay €95 per tonne at 19% starch for the 2027 crop, the same as this season. The company says high starch stocks leave no room for a rise.
A major German potato starch processor has set its contract price for the 2027 harvest. The company, Emsland Group, will pay €95 per tonne of potatoes at 19% starch content. The price is unchanged from the current season. Dutch farm outlet Boerenbusiness reported the decision on 26 September 2026.
Potatoes delivered above the contracted volume will earn €90 per tonne at 19% starch. After last season, the company paid growers an extra €5 per tonne.
Big losses in the west
The company expects yield losses of 10% to 50% among its growers this year. The spread depends on the region. Western Germany was hit hardest by drought and heat. Central, eastern and northern areas did better. Irrigation helped some growers there.
A smaller crop would normally support prices. The company says the starch market works differently. Starch stocks are higher than in previous years after last season’s large harvest. Demand for starch and potato flakes has not risen in line with the lower supply.
The company also says a price cut is not possible. Cultivation costs are not falling, it states. They are only rising.
Fries market moves on a different track
The starch decision contrasts with the fries sector. In Belgium and France, Fontane potatoes sold outside contracts fetch about €20 per 100 kg. In the Netherlands, Innovator trades at €25 to €27.50 per 100 kg. Yet the average Belgian contract price for Fontane is only €13.20 per 100 kg this week. That is €4.50 below the same week last year, according to Boerenbusiness.
Germany faces a much smaller crop overall. Federal statistics put the 2026 potato harvest at about 10.4 million tonnes, down 24.8%. Starch potatoes are grown mainly in the north and east of the country.
Why it matters
Starch growers will not gain from the shortage in fresh and fries potatoes. A flat base price and rising costs squeeze their margin per hectare. Growers in the worst-hit western areas face the lowest returns.
The decision may push some growers to compare starch contracts with fries or table potato options for 2027. Starch processors, in turn, need enough contracted area to run their plants. The extra-volume price of €90 per tonne is a signal that they still want surplus tonnes from strong regions.
Photo: Start of a starch potato harvest in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany (illustrative). BASFPlantScience / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
