Brussels: Potato prices for industrial processing in Belgium have plummeted to zero pounds amid an increasing supply surplus, Belga news agency reported Tuesday.

According to Anadolu Agency, the sector federation Belgapom's latest price quotation shows that maincrop potatoes intended for long-term storage and processing into products such as frozen chips have seen a dramatic decline in recent months. Prices fell to 10 pounds per ton (approximately $11) in March before effectively reaching zero.

This price point is applicable to potatoes sold on the open market to large chip manufacturers. Previously, around 70% to 80% of the harvest had been secured under higher-priced contracts, leaving the remaining volume vulnerable to the weak market demand. In recent weeks, the federation noted, no price was set due to a lack of trade activity.

"Farmers have sold their potatoes, but at 0 euros. Anything is better than ploughing them in or destroying them," Belgapom CEO Christophe Vermeulen stated. Growers are currently dealing with a surplus amounting to several hundred thousand tons, with limited demand from processors who already have adequate stock.

The ongoing maincrop potato season is further exacerbating the supply pressures. Efforts to find alternative uses for the excess potatoes, such as animal feed or biofuel production, have so far been limited in scale.