As forecasted, the season of strawberries in Ukraine started two weeks later than in 2020.

The season of greenhouse strawberries in Ukraine began 2 weeks later than in 2020, in line with the earlier forecast made by the analysts of the EastFruit project.
The reasons for the shift in the current season for berry and vegetable crops have already been disclosed in many articles on the EastFruit portal. The shift of the seasons for early vegetables, berries and fruit, 10 to 14 days compared to last year, is confirmed.

Today, producers of the southern regions of Ukraine offer the first batches of strawberries on average at $ 7.89/kg, and in 2020 the prices for the first berries were the same.
“Remarkable is the fact that the first strawberries from local greenhouses appeared on the market in the first ten days of April last year. And the main reason for the previously predicted lag in the current harvesting season is the atypically cold first half of spring this year,” Olexandr Khorev, an independent FAO consultant says.
There is a clear dynamics of price decline in the first three weeks last year. By 23 April 2020, wholesale strawberries were sold at an average of $ 2.59/kg. However, later the market situation changed dramatically. Cool May with frequent frosts in 2020 resulted into more than 50% of early and medium varieties of open field strawberries dying.
What to expect in 2021? Today there is a clear fact of the shift in the season of greenhouse strawberries in Ukraine, and there are no forecasts for the future harvest from open ground. It is the weather conditions that will once again remain the main regulator of changes in the market situation in this segment.
The leading offline berry conference FtradeClub Berries , organized by the APK-Inform: Vegetables and Fruits project is scheduled for the end of May 2021. The state and development prospects of the strawberry market in Ukraine, along with two other main berries – raspberries and blueberries, will be the main points of the event.