Blueberry season ends in Ukraine

Analysts of the APK-Inform: Vegetables and Fruits project report that the season of selling blueberries in Ukrainian farms is already close to completion, which entails a rapid decrease in the supply of this berry on the market. A characteristic feature of this season of blueberries is a significant shift in the start of realization and completion, which is due to the cold and long spring.

It should be noted that the majority of Ukrainian gardeners offer to sell the residual lots of blueberries already today. At the same time, active demand and reduced supply in this segment allow them to conclude deals at UAH 200-270 / kg ($ 7.19-9.70 / kg), while prices for blueberries were kept at a reasonably high level throughout the season.

“The current development of the situation on the blueberry market in Ukraine, when with the annual increase in area, producers harvest a lower harvest than a year earlier, it is challenging to consider it optimal. Even in the case when individual farms were able to make money at a fairly high price level for berries, most blueberry producers in the current season could hardly get even a minimal profit,” commented Olexander Khorev, head of the APK-Inform: Vegetables and Fruits project.

Currently, blueberries in Ukraine are, on average, 1.6 times more expensive than at the end of the season last year. The higher level of prices for blueberries in Ukraine compared to the previous year is due to the delay in the ripening season by an average of 7-10 days. Another essential factor in this price situation was significant losses incurred by producers of these berries due to spring frosts and other natural disasters.

More detailed information on the blueberry market prospects in Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus will be presented during the international webinar “The Blueberry Market in Eastern Europe,” which will take place on September 17 at 14:00 Kyiv time.