From Field
to Frier

We need to talk Potatoes

One of Harlees directors spent a September Sunday at one of the UKs potato farms located in Ely, North of Cambridge. A day hosted by Isle of Ely Produce and Chippy Chat magazine.

The open day was used to bring farmers, friers and other members associated with the Fish and Chip industry together to learn about the growing of potatoes used to make delicious chips and the effect of the weather on this year’s crops. The day also included a tour to one of the potato fields and the sorting and packaging plant.

In addition, seminars included talks by the NFFF (National Federation of Fish Friers), Drywite Young Fish Frier Winners Mr C’s, Seafood from Norway, Fish and Chip shop 2018 winners Millers of Haxby and lots more.

It was a great day for networking, but the outlook for the main 2018 potato crop is not so positive. The crop is down 40% compared to 2017. This reduction is due to the colder spring into the hot summer, that was too hot for potato growth. Sadly, this hasn’t just affected potato farms in the UK, but across Europe driving up demand, and price.

What does this mean for Harlees customers?

Harlees will do its upmost to protect their customers from the rising potato price over the coming year.

You may find that your portions contain smaller sized chips due to the reduced size of potatoes, but they will still taste as great!

What can I do as a Harlees customer?

Don’t be a chip chucker!

When ordering at Harlees, think about ordering a ‘chip cone’ instead of a ‘regular’ or sharing a large with others.

A recent consumer survey conducted by Seafish and AHDB Potatoes found the following:

44% say portions are too big

21% admit throwing food away

33% would like a small portion option