Potato crisis in Russia: Prices rise by 160 percent
The situation is so serious that even Vladimir Putin himself has spoken out. At a meeting with economic officials broadcast on Russian television, the Russian president recently admitted: "Yes, we don’t have enough potatoes this year."
But this simple tuber, of all things, is now becoming a political issue: Russia is in the midst of a serious potato crisis . According to "Spiegel," the price rose by over 160 percent in 2025 compared to the previous year. The price per kilo is currently equivalent to between 50 and 80 cents – with an average Russian pension of around 200 euros, that’s a lot of money.
The drastic price explosion is the result of a combination of several factors. After an above-average potato year in 2023, many farms significantly reduced their acreage in 2024. The reason: Prices had previously fallen so much that cultivation was no longer profitable. Then the late frost in May hit the remaining fields hard. Many plants froze and had to be replanted as a last resort, often with low yields.
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