What opportunities does the UK market currently offer for French potatoes? This is what FranceAgriMer sought to assess through a study carried out in collaboration with the National Interprofessional Potato Committee (CNIPT) and the Interprofessional Group for the Promotion of Potatoes (GIPT), and conducted by the consultancy firm AgrexConsulting.

While the area under table potato cultivation in the UK is declining, making the country increasingly reliant on imports, the potential for growth for French produce remains limited. The main potential identified lies in supplying UK manufacturers with fresh potatoes for processing, while the markets for ready-made fries, chips and fresh potatoes offer more limited prospects.

A UK market increasingly reliant on imports
In 2025, approximately 127,000 hectares of potatoes were grown in the UK, 110,000 hectares of which were for consumption and 17,000 hectares for seed. The area under table potatoes has been on a downward trend for the past decade or so. It still stood at 129,000 hectares in 2011.

The UK’s exit from the European Union in 2020 disrupted trade flows, while adverse weather conditions also affected the areas planted in 2023 and 2024. In 2025, production was estimated at 3.2 million tons excluding losses, a figure in line with the average of the last five years.

At the same time, reliance on imports is increasing. Their share of the UK supply averaged 34% prior to the 2021/2022 season, compared with 40% since then. This trend is largely due to the decline in production volumes.

Processed potatoes dominate UK consumption by a wide margin, accounting for 71% of volumes consumed in 2025, compared with 29% for fresh potatoes. French fries alone account for 39% of consumption, ahead of traditional fresh potatoes (25%), chips (13%), other frozen products (10%), other processed forms (6%), fresh new potatoes (4%) and other snacks (3%).

Fries: France’s main potential lies in the pre-processing stage
The fries and other frozen potato products segment is the one with the highest dependence on imports. British manufacturers process around 965,000 tons of raw potatoes, mainly of domestic origin, while consumption stands at 2.45 million tons in raw potato equivalent.

Imports of finished products amount to approximately 1.54 million tons in raw potato equivalent for the 2024/2025 marketing year. UK production thus covers only 37% of consumption, with the remaining 63% coming from imports.

However, this market is highly concentrated. Belgium accounts for 60% of import volumes and the Netherlands for 33%. France remains below the 1% mark, with around 6,000 tons of fries and frozen products shipped during the last season.

AgrexConsulting estimates that UK consumption of fries could continue to rise over the next five years. The preferred scenario projects around 2.8 million tons in raw equivalent by 2030, representing an average annual increase of 2.3%.

For France, however, the primary potential identified does not relate to finished fries, but to the supply of fresh potatoes to UK manufacturers. These manufacturers currently purchase mainly British potatoes, with imports of fresh potatoes accounting for less than 5% of their volumes and remaining heavily dependent on the size of the domestic harvest. The potential is estimated at around 30,000 tons of fresh potatoes, with no prospect of an increase in the short term.

Regarding finished products, British manufacturers work with long-established partners and are not seeking new suppliers. French potatoes also face intra-European competition and cost pressure. Instead, the study identifies an indirect market via European groups based in France, which are likely to use French potatoes intended for processing. More sporadic interest may also arise in the event of poor harvests in the United Kingdom.

Fresh potatoes: a niche and stopgap market
With around 1.3 million tons consumed in 2025, excluding new potatoes, fresh potatoes constitute the second-largest market segment in the UK, behind fries and frozen products. However, this segment relies overwhelmingly on domestic production.

During the 2024/2025 marketing year, around 107,000 tons of fresh and new potatoes were imported, accounting for 7% of consumption. Israel is the leading supplier, accounting for 20% of volumes, ahead of the Netherlands and France.

Following a sharp decline since 2018, imports from France have been on the rise again over the last two marketing years, reaching 16,000 tons.

Imports are mainly used to supplement an insufficient UK harvest or to meet specific size requirements. There is occasional demand, in particular, for red potatoes and sizes larger than 65/70 mm.

However, the potential remains limited. British produce is highly valued on the shelves, and the main supermarket own-brand ranges leave little room for foreign produce. French potatoes are also perceived as a generic product, offering no particular competitive advantage over other European origins. Some opportunities may arise following poor UK harvests or for certain premium varieties, but the study does not identify any favorable prospects in the short term.

Chips and snacks: Very little room for France
The picture is very different for chips and snacks. British manufacturers process around 754,000 tons of raw potatoes, and domestic production accounts for 88% of consumption in this segment.

Imports account for only 12% of the volumes consumed. France’s share remains marginal, with around 530 tons (raw equivalent) imported during the last marketing year.

The chips market appears to be mature, with consumption tending to stabilize at around 650,000 tons in raw potato equivalent. Potato-based snacks remain more dynamic, but their growth relies in particular on the use of imported dehydrated potatoes.

The study considers this market to be largely closed to new entrants. The chips sector is dominated by a few well-established national brands, while the snacks sector is structured at the European level by large groups. Only the dehydrated potato sector offers limited scope for entry. The potential for France therefore remains very low.

Increased British dependence, but not a market widely open to France
The decline in UK production and the rise in imports do not, therefore, translate into a uniform opening of the market for French operators.

The market for fries is heavily reliant on imports, but finished products remain dominated by Belgium and the Netherlands. The British fresh produce sector continues to favor domestic produce and offers only sporadic opportunities, linked in particular to crop shortfalls, missing sizes or certain varieties. As for chips and snacks, these constitute a largely self-sufficient and difficult-to-access market.

For the French sector, the main avenue for development identified by the study lies therefore in supplying UK manufacturers with fresh potatoes for processing, ahead of one-off opportunities in the fresh produce market. The potential, however, appears to be very limited for chips, snacks and, in the short term, ready-made fries.

Source: franceagrimer.fr