THE combined influence of increased local production and declining disposable incomes for some households has negatively impacted demand for table potatoes triggering a 100 percent drop in prices between June and July.
Earlier this year, Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development permanent secretary, Professor Obert Jiri said the country was targeting 6 750 hectares of Irish potato, mainly from members of the Horticultural Development Council (HDC).
Daily market trade prices collected and released by Knowledge Transfer Africa (KTA) show that potato prices had been rising since the beginning of June to a peak of US$14 per 15 kilogramme extra-large pocket by June 12. This trend has since been reversed with the same pocket size dropping to US$7 - a 100 percent decline.
Large pockets had also reached US$13 per pocket but have since fallen to US$6.
KTA chief executive officer, Dr Charles Dhewa yesterday said as markets continued to play an important coordination role of matching demand and supply, potato prices had drastically fallen due to increased local production amid decreasing disposable incomes.
Said Dr Dhewa: "Potato supplies at Mbare Musika continue to increase amid speculation that they are being imported from South Africa but I do not agree with that. A lot of potatoes are coming from Manicaland province where there is increased production, which is not in tandem with diminished demand due to a decline in disposable incomes."
Some consumers are also switching from Irish potatoes to products like sweet potatoes, rice, macaroni and spaghetti.
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Zimbabwe Seed Potatoes Companies Associations (ZSPCA) chairman, Mr Peter Steyl concurred saying though there had been a marginal increase in potato production in the market, the biggest cause of the decline was the drop in disposable income.
"The increase in potato production has not been much. The important factor here is that most consumers do not have money. The increase in supply might also be a result of frost that has caused some farmers to harvest their crop early," he said.
"We are likely to have another glut later in the year after some wheat farmers dumped the cereal to produce potatoes," he added.
Government declared potato a strategic crop to enhance food security at both household and national level and instituted a number of measures, chief among them a ban on table potato imports since 2010.
This was a deliberate move to protect the local potato farmers from unfair competition from cheap imports from neighbouring countries.
Government's call for import substitution through local production has resulted in 100 percent increase in homegrown table potato cultivation as farmers collaborate with agro-processors through off take arrangements for enhanced production, market access and sustainability.
The country no longer imports table potatoes but potato seed to augment local production, which is increasing as more farmers are being contracted in seed production by Kutsaga and other local seed producers.
