Potato harvesting has once again been affected by wet weather, with widespread rainfall in recent weeks hampering grower efforts to get the crop out of the ground. According to the Met Office, the UK experienced the fifth-wettest October since 1862 last month. It included the wettest day on record for average rainfall (31.7mm) on 3 October.
Key processors McCain and Lamb Weston both spoke of challenging conditions in East Anglia, parts of which saw close to 200% of their usual average rainfall in October. But despite these difficulties, both companies said their growers had managed to already get most of the crop out of the ground.
“Despite the climatic challenges and added impact of Covid-19, we’re pleased that our farmers have already been able to harvest over 90% of the crop,” said McCain GB & Ireland agriculture director Daniel Metheringham.
“This year, I am confident our farmers will harvest the majority of potatoes and whilst yields are marginally down, the quality of the crop is good.”
Lamb Weston said most of its farmers had completed lifting with the exception of some parts of Norfolk where they were expecting to have to wait “several days” for the land to dry out.
Source: News Press Live
