Average retail price for potatoes in Canada 2015-2022
The average retail price for potatoes was at 10.33 Canadian dollars per 4.54 kilograms in February 2022. As well as monthly fluctuations, the price has quite dramatically risen over the survey period, with an average annual price of 5.62 Canadian dollars in 2014.
Why do prices fluctuate?
Changes in demand or a bad harvest can affect the retail price of potatoes for consumers in grocery stores. A bad harvest could be caused by unexpected changes in weather, such as heatwaves, droughts or too much rain, and cold weather. Such conditions can hinder harvests and decrease production volumes, pushing up prices. Average expenses of potato farms in Canada have gradually risen over the past few years, reaching a high of 1.37 million Canadian dollars in 2018, this could also have a knock-on effect on retail prices.
Canadian potato production
Canadian potato production seems to, as of yet, not be too adversely affected by such changes in weather. The production volume of fresh white potatoes has, for example, gradually increased to around 4.8 million metric tons in 2017. Canada imported around 166,660 metric tons of fresh potatoes in the 2016/17 marketing year and exported around 438,670 metric tons of fresh potatoes worldwide.
Why do prices fluctuate?
Changes in demand or a bad harvest can affect the retail price of potatoes for consumers in grocery stores. A bad harvest could be caused by unexpected changes in weather, such as heatwaves, droughts or too much rain, and cold weather. Such conditions can hinder harvests and decrease production volumes, pushing up prices. Average expenses of potato farms in Canada have gradually risen over the past few years, reaching a high of 1.37 million Canadian dollars in 2018, this could also have a knock-on effect on retail prices.
Canadian potato production
Canadian potato production seems to, as of yet, not be too adversely affected by such changes in weather. The production volume of fresh white potatoes has, for example, gradually increased to around 4.8 million metric tons in 2017. Canada imported around 166,660 metric tons of fresh potatoes in the 2016/17 marketing year and exported around 438,670 metric tons of fresh potatoes worldwide.
