A delighted potato grower has seen overseas sales of his crop boom after a surprisingly good year.

Chris Suckling of Holbrook is a fourth generation farmer who has been growing potatoes over 90 to 100 acres of his small-scale farm for about the last 30 years.

This season he was expecting the worst after Storm Babet was followed by months of rain.

"It's been a strange year," he says. Waterlogging in fields risked delaying planting but in the end he got the crops in the ground in good time - considering the conditions.

"Once the crops were in the ground they actually got going really quickly. Normally nature throws us a curveball with a cold April but it didn't happen," he says. "We got off to a flying start and it just snowballed."

(Image: Lucy Taylor)It was also an excellent year for his oilseed rape. Other potato farmers were finding the same, with crops ready about 14 to 21 days early. 

But it's been a tough few years for the potato sector with many quitting it altogether - or cutting back on their crop areas, says Chris.

"A lot of people went out of the industry years ago and once you go out you don't go back in again because the investment is too large. We are reaping the rewards of supply and demand being in our favour."

It has been a "really good" year for export sales with about 20 to 25 loads of his potatoes weighing 25t each heading out to the Canary Islands. "The export trade has done us proud this year," he says.

Within the next few days he expects to have most of his crop in, with some going to McCain's as chipping potatoes. He'll keep a little back to store over the winter time.

The Suckling family runs a shop on the farm called the Potato Hut, selling its own potatoes as well as other local produce.

(Image: Lucy Taylor)

Prices are still low but "not too bad" this year, he says. He points out that they are still the same as about 15 years about at £10 for a 25kg bag of white potatoes and £12 for a bag of reds. It represents "excellent" value for money, he says.

"If you spend £12/13 there's a lot of food for your money - that would keep a family going for a month."

But it means while his input prices have gone up hugely, his return is diminished.

Two years ago was a "very average" year and a lot of growers relying on credit were forced out, he says.

But he has stuck with a crop that he has become expert in producing. One of his major challenges is sourcing reliable seasonal staff. He focuses on doing the things he can control well.

"A lot of it is down to doing what I can do properly," he says. "The market we have aimed at is the market we have aimed at for the last 30 years. Going forward I can't see anything really changing."