The total production of table potatoes increased by 4 percent compared to 2023. However, compared to the five-year average, production in 2024 is 4 percent lower. Early harvests, heavy local precipitation and downy mildew may be factors behind the total harvest being lower than the five-year average. Gotland county had the largest increase in total production with 19 percent compared to 2023, followed by Västra Götaland and Skåne counties with 10 percent and 7 percent, respectively. The only county where the total production decreased significantly was Östergötland county, where total production decreased by 16 percent.

The total production of starch potatoes is estimated at 406 800 tonnes. This is an increase in production of 55 800 tonnes (16 percent) compared to the final total production for 2023 and 18 percent higher than the five-year average.

“The production of starch potatoes is at an historically high level. Only during 1978–1979 was the total production of starch potatoes higher. One factor that could explain the sharp increase is profitability,” says Sergio Tena Vasco, agricultural statistician at Statistics Sweden.

The average yield per hectare of table potatoes, including new potatoes, was 32 980 kilos in 2024. This is 4 percent higher than in 2023.

The average yield per hectare of starch potatoes was 44 720 kilos in 2024. Compared to the five-year average, the yield per hectare is 5 percent higher.

Smallest ever area for table potatoes

In 2024, the cultivated area of table potatoes was estimated at 14 480 hectares, which is half of what it was in the early 1980s and, together with 2023, the smallest area ever recorded in the statistics.

In 2024, the cultivated area of starch potatoes was 9 100 hectares. This is an increase of 1 060 hectares, or 13 percent compared to 2023. The year’s area for starch potatoes is the highest in 24 years. The increase is due to the fact that cultivating starch potatoes has become more profitable. Another factor is that the area of sugar beets, which is also suitable for potato cultivation, has decreased in the past year in favour of starch potato cultivation.

The unharvested area is estimated at 250 hectares. The average for the previous five years was 270 hectares. The main reason given by the farmers for the unharvested areas in 2024 was heavy rains that caused flooding and resulted in rotting crops.

A more detailed report on this survey will be published in a statics report on the Swedish Board of Agriculture website www.jordbruksverket.se under Statistik (in Swedish).

Statistical databases

Time series with the final harvest statistics are available in the Swedish Board of Agriculture’s statistical database and Statistics Sweden’s statistical database. The Swedish Board of Agriculture’s statistical database also contains the preliminary harvest statistics.

Final results for 2024 will be reported in April 2025.