Wilcox, one of Woolworth's incredible growers, has had a fantastic growing season. The growing conditions this summer have been significantly better than the last couple of years, with reasonable rainfall and plentiful sunshine.
According to Wilcox, this has resulted in healthy crops and high yields, the upshot being that there are more potatoes available for sale and consumption now, than in the last couple of years.
"Because of this there is definitely downward pressure on pricing meaning consumers are currently seeing lower retail prices than the same time last year. This bodes well for families who are looking for healthy, nutritious, filling meals in these tough economic times. New Zealand grows a variety of potatoes that are suitable for any number of cooking types from boiling potatoes which are great for curries, salads and stews through to roasting potatoes which are perfect for homemade wedges, mashing or roasting whole. If you’re looking for something different, try Inca Gold which is the ultimate golden, creamy, roasting potato and only available at Woolworths."
Woolworths New Zealand sell around 300 tonnes of potatoes a week (averaged over the last 52 weeks). Wilcox have supplied Woolworths nationally with just over 9,000 tonnes of potatoes in the last 12 month period.
"Potatoes are a staple of Kiwi’s diets; an essential part of any weekly shop," added Ryan McMullen, General Manager of Fruit and Vegetables at Woolworths New Zealand.
"We’re delighted to see such a fantastic crop coming from our growers every day. It’s been a challenging few years for them and it’s comforting to see such an abundance of potatoes passing through our store. The high number of spuds has reduced supply pressure and in turn brought the price down meaning we’re seeing real value for shoppers."
Read more about New Zealand growers here.
