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This year's growing season for sugar beet is developing into another difficult year for European farmers, as Copa - Cogeca states in a relevant opinion text, with the unpredictable weather conditions in spring, summer and autumn, combined with the ongoing difficulty in protection of crops from pests and diseases, have intensified the challenges facing the sector. The plant health situation is a critical issue, as weed, pest and disease pressure is constantly increasing. Diseases such as downy mildew and powdery mildew have severely affected areas with heavy rainfall, resulting in extremely low sugar content and historically low yields in many countries. The increasing variability in beet quality and sugar yields is a worrying trend across the EU.

This was told by the representative of the Agroteam Perithori producer organization Yosif Kokkinidis, writes FreshPlaza. He believes that the season will end two months earlier than usual. "Usually the stock of potatoes from Neurokopi (the main potato-growing region in Greece. — Ed.) is enough until the end of February, but this time there is no certainty that potatoes will be available until the end of 2024. This is due to a decrease in the cultivation area. There is also a significant lack of water. It is difficult for producers to maintain their harvests," he clarified. The expert noted that due to extreme temperatures, the potatoes began to ripen earlier than usual, and this affected the shelf life of the product. Therefore, sales started rather hastily. However, I was pleased that the demand was also high, and there were no problems with finding sales markets. On foreign markets, Greece is facing pressure from German and French potatoes. At the same time, the expert notes that the main problem has become warm warehouses in which packers have invested. However, changes

The potato season in Greece is ending earlier than usual. Iosif Kokkinidis, a representative of the producer organization Agroteam Perithori from Nevrokopi, the most important potato growing region in Greece, says that the end of the season will come two months earlier than usual, EastFruit reports. “Usually, potato reserves in Nevrokopi last until the end of February, but this time it is unknown whether potatoes will be available by the end of 2024. This is due to the reduction in the area under cultivation. From 1,700 hectares last season, they have now been halved. There is also a significant shortage of water. It is difficult for producers to maintain the volume of the harvest,” the producer explains. According to Kokkinidis, the drought and abnormally high temperatures last summer exacerbated the seasonal difficulties. Due to the intense heat, potatoes began to sprout earlier than usual, and this affected the shelf life of the product. Therefore, sales of the root crop began hastily. Luckily, demand was also high, so there were no problems with