Australia: Woolworths sees no spud shortage as Chinese-owned potato player collapses

Woolworths says there will be no potato shortage in its 960 supermarkets after the collapse of Australia’s biggest potato supplier, as rival Coles says it can’t be blamed because Oakville Produce isn’t a material supplier. Oakville Produce, Australia’s biggest supplier of potatoes and onions with a fresh potato market share of 23 per cent in the $625 million industry, went into receivership last week and Deloitte has been appointed to try to sell it. The company was 70 per cent-owned by Chinese conglomerate Chevalier Group, and buckled under high debt levels, with Commonwealth Bank pulling the plug on May 11. It supplies about three-quarters of all the potatoes sold in Woolworths and is a long-standing supplier. Deloitte outlined in advertisements earlier this week that it was seeking “urgent” expressions of interests for the business from potential buyers and that Oakville was a “major supplier to national retailers and supermarkets” with its fresh potato market share in excess of 23 per cent. More