Netherlands

aardappel

Year
2007
Production
7 936 600 tons
Harvested area
397 670 acres
Yield
19.94 tons/acre

Source: FAOSTAT

Within a century of its introduction to the Netherlands, in the 1600s, the potato had become one of the country's most important food crops. Today, the Netherlands ranks among the world's top potato producers, with a 2006 harvest of 7.1 million tons.

While potato production is declining in most of Europe, the Dutch still plant almost 25 percent of their arable land - almost 400 000 acres - with potato, and have achieved world record yield levels of 20 tons per acre. The potato sector is highly mechanized and draws on a list of some 250 approved varieties.

Only half of the Netherlands' potato crop is grown directly for food - around 20 percent is seed potatoes, and the remaining 30 percent is processed for starch. About 70 percent of Dutch ware potatoes is exported in the form of fresh tubers and potato products, such as chips and flour. The Netherlands is the world's major supplier of certified seed potatoes, with exports of some 770 000 tons a year.

Further details from the Netherlands Potato Consultative Foundation