Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you.
Posted on 05/08/2026 10:54:34 AM PDT by nickcarraway
Potato-linked financial contracts have risen over 700% in a few weeks, despite a current oversupply in Europe, due to speculative trading surrounding the volatile environment caused by the Iran war.
Potato contracts for difference (CFDs), which track the benchmark market for the commodity, have seen prices soar roughly 705% in less than a month.
Since 21 April, the cost per hundred kilograms has risen from approximately €2.11 to a staggering €18.50.
However, this price is in fact still very low compared to where the potato market was in the last two years. This is due to the underlying physical market in Europe currently suffering from a major oversupply.
After shortages and strong prices in previous seasons, farmers in countries including Belgium, Netherlands, France and Germany expanded planting areas significantly.
Favorable weather conditions then produced exceptionally large harvests, creating a substantial surplus across the European market. As a result, processors and exporters have struggled to absorb the supply, pushing farmgate prices sharply downward.
Reportedly some lower-quality potatoes intended for animal feed or industrial use have traded at extremely low or even negative prices. In those cases, growers may effectively pay transport or disposal costs to move excess stock off their farms.
The cited €18.50 benchmark generally refers to “free-buy” potatoes sold on the open market rather than potatoes already covered by fixed-price contracts between growers and processors.
Although this price is above the negative values seen in secondary markets, many producers still consider it financially unsustainable because production costs, including fuel, fertiliser, storage and electricity, have risen substantially.
The contrast between weak physical prices and sharp movements in financial benchmarks reflects the difference between commodity trading markets and the real agricultural supply chain.
Financial markets can react strongly to volatility, expectations about future harvests, weather risks, export demand or potential supply corrections, even while current physical inventories remain excessive.
In other words, the large percentage increase seen in potato-linked financial instruments does not mean potatoes have suddenly become expensive in Europe, instead, it reflects volatility in a market attempting to price future conditions linked to the current instability.
Negative effects of the Iran war
The conflict in the Middle East has severely hindered the export of essential chemicals and minerals required for industrial farming, leading to widespread fears regarding global food security.
As potatoes are a nutrient-intensive crop, the sudden lack of affordable fertiliser has direct implications for future yields and current market valuations.
To make matters worse, the regional instability has made primary shipping lanes increasingly hazardous, complicating the logistics of agricultural trade.
According to the UN, roughly a third of the world's fertilisers such as urea, potash, ammonia and phosphates normally pass through the currently blocked Strait of Hormuz.
In response to these rising costs and uncertainty, traders are seemingly repricing futures contracts and no longer prioritising the current reality of oversupply.
While for European consumers, this does not presently translate to a massive increase in the cost of a basic dietary staple, the move in potato CFDs highlights an anxious market attempting to price the several and encompassing economic effects of the Iran war.
|
|
Click here: to donate by Credit Card Or here: to donate by PayPal Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794 Thank you very much and God bless you. |
Only a third of the world’s fertilizers ? Acting like it’s 200% ,more money grabbing ,D’oh
Perhaps mixing it with organic matter would make a smaller amount of fertilizer effective for longer.
$45.00 bucks for a hashbrowns at the fast food joints. A medium french fries will cost about $79 bucks.
Sounds like prices on the Planet Algon.
(He’s been with the world)
I’m tired of the soup du jour
(He’s been with the world)
I wanna end this prophylactic tour
Afraid that no-one around me
Understands my potato
Think I’m only a spud boy
Looking for a real tomato
-DEVO (Smart Patrol/Mr. DNA)
This would be a good time to end the Russian Ukrainian War.
The Ukrainians have worked hard to make Russians into reasonable people, and dead people.
The nitrates used to kill could be used as fertilizer.
Watch the chives and sour cream numbers as well! 😊
Nicely done!
On the bright side, there may be a second Russian Revolution if vodka prices rise enough.
There’s farm up the road and they’ve been spraying liquid cow manure for about a week now , so sweet ,LOL
Shortages of vodka is what got Khrushchev canned because of his failed “Virgin Lands” experiment.
If there is a french fry shortage in the US there will be unrest. Count on it. 🍟🍟🍟🍟🤯🤯
Noticed the speeches from AOC and the others have an even greater content of spewed BS. Utilize it.💩💩💩💩
I just bought a tomato…A SINGLE normal sized tomato at my local grocery.
It was $4.69.
I’m not using these prices to attack a trump, I know they rose under Biden even faster.
But dang, the pain is real.
OH and I live in the mid-west , not some mega sized and expensive city either.
Haha a funny and prophetic movie.
Meme....
In our unstable world, catastrophe is always one denied french fry order away.
True news summary....
Several violent altercations have occurred at McDonald’s locations stemming from disputes over sauce packets, resulting in police investigations, charges, and injuries. .
First three cases in a search:
April 2025 (St. Petersburg, FL): A 17-year-old girl went behind the counter to grab ranch sauce after not being assisted.
A 31-year-old employee, Akeena Sampson, reportedly grabbed, choked, and tackled the teen, resulting in visible injuries.
April 2024 (Florida): A customer, enraged by missing hot sauce, pulled a shotgun on employees at a drive-thru.
April 2024 (Florida): A man attacked a person who intervened in his argument over missing sauce.
“Potato Futures Soar 700% in Less Than a Month on Iran war Speculation”. I speculate that Idaho potato farmers might have a good year.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.