Greek farmers offload potatoes at cost price

Farmers say it costs about 20 cents ($0.27) to produce a kilogram (2 pounds) of potatoes, but that wholesalers will only buy them for 10-12 cents to get the crop to supermarkets, where they sell for about 60-70 cents a kilogram. Faced with making a loss, many producers say they have been unable to even get their products to the market.

Greece’s severe financial crisis, now entering its third year, has seen pensions and salaries slashed and led to skyrocketing unemployment of over 20 percent. More and more people have been turning up at soup kitchens run by the church or local aid groups, and homelessness has been increasing.

Faced with an ever deepening recession, some local groups have begun coming up with novel ways to beat the financial crunch.

Ilias Tsolakidis, 54, part of a volunteer group in northern Greece, said he contacted a potato farmer in northern Greece last week and posted an advertisement on the internet offering consumers the chance to order directly from the producer at cost price. He was overwhelmed by the response: by Wednesday, all 24 tons of potatoes on offer had been sold, with 534 families putting in orders.

His motive, Tsolakidis said, was “to cover a financial gap in the family budget. You know, the situation in the financial crisis has become very difficult. We help producers (from the local area) on the one hand, and also the families of consumers.’’

Kiki Pantelopoulou couldn’t agree more.

“I didn’t only do this because it’s in my interest,’’ said the 42-year-old as she loaded a sack of potatoes onto her bicycle. “My main concern is how to stop this situation. This way, we favor Greek products and therefore producers can at least make the cost price.’’

Tsolakidis said that with demand so high, his group of volunteers would set up another sale next weekend, buying another 24 tons of potatoes from a different farmer this time.

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