They will make frozen French fries and multiply in Hauts-de-France. After the start, in November 2023, of production at the new factory of the Belgian group Clarebout, in Bourbourg, near Dunkerque (north), – 220,000 tons per year –, another industrial plant on the other side of Quiévrain, Ecofrost, will be operational to manufacture 100,000 tons. of French fries in 2026 and double that in 2030.
The first stone was laid in June on the Péronne site (Somme), where the Flodor chip factory was located, closed in 2005. The thing is not over. Return to the North, with the acquisition of the Escaudoeuvres sugar factory, closed by Tereos in November 2023, where Agristo, still Belgian, is beginning to build storage warehouses, before the inauguration of the factory announced for 2027. In total , 350 million euros. of investments for a planned volume of 300,000 tons of frozen potato products in three years.
As for the Canadian McCain, already present in Harnes and Béthune, in Pas-de-Calais, it plans investments of 350 million euros in its French factories, which will mainly benefit the Harnes factory, whose production will increase from 260,000 to 380,000 tons.
“True know-how”
As summarized by Bertrand Ouillon, general delegate of the Interprofessional Group for Potato Valorization, “For twenty years nothing has happened in France regarding the industrialization of processed potatoes, so, of course, we welcome this news with great interest. In the next five years, we run the risk of doubling the production of processed potatoes in France”. It is currently 1.6 million tons, of which frozen French fries represent 75%.
The Belgians’ appetite for the Hauts-de-France does not surprise Mr. Ouillon: “They are stuck in their country in terms of potato production capacity and they buy more and more in France to process them in Belgium. but factories have every interest in having producers nearby to save on transportation costs. » Joanny Dussurgey, president of the National Interprofessional Potato Committee, assures that the interest of Belgians in Hauts-de-France is not only due to the lack of arable land, although it is real, but also to the “ [à leur] authentic know-how. “In general, we have higher yields than the Belgians. »
Professional organizations agree on future needs. “If all factories reach the announced figures, it will be necessary to produce 1.5 million more potatoes, which corresponds to between 30,000 and 40,000 additional cultivated hectares. »evaluates Mr. Ouillon.
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