Brace for potato shortage (and R200/10kg price) in coming weeks

Lester Kiewit speaks to Mohammed Adam, a buyer at M&R Marketing.

The price of your parcel of fish 'n chips is about to skyrocket due to a country-wide potato shortage.

A notice was sent out by fresh produce distributor 'M&R Marketing' from Epping about a potato shortage due to severe weather conditions affecting crop yields.

Major retailers confirm the impending shortage. 

South Africa has several potato producers, but they are not meeting demand.

The potato shortage means that the price of potatoes and frozen chips will increase between now and the end of September.

A 10-kilogram pocket of potatoes may cost around R180 to R200.

Adam says yields should improve by November, as crops recover from 'black frost', thereby normalising prices.

"The main cause is the natural phenomena of the black frost which hit the Limpopo farming areas quite severely this year. With the severe weather, we have experienced severe black frost this season which has affected the potato crop." 

- Mohammed Adam, Buyer - M&R Marketing

Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the full conversation.