Since the middle of the last decade of September, wholesale prices for plums in Moldova have increased by 3-4 MDL/kg in less than two weeks – on average, up to 9 MDL/kg ($0.51/kg). In fact, the average price returned to the August level, but still lags behind the level of October last year (10-11 MDL/kg, $0.58-0.64/kg).
The October rise in wholesale prices for Moldovan plums was predictable. According to EastFruit, the experts of the Federation of Farmers of the Republic of Moldova FARM linked the projected price rise with late-ripening plum varieties (“President”, etc.) prevailing in the supplies to the EU in October at a price of at least 8 MDL/kg ($0.45/kg).
Participants of the Moldovan fruit market argue that the increase in wholesale prices for plums in the first ten days of October, even slightly higher than the previously estimated average level, is explained by two reasons. The first is a rather rapid decline in supply: in many orchards, plums have already been harvested, the most part of them sold and the rest stored.
Another reason is the continuing high demand from processors. The only difference is that in the second half of September the main buyers of industrial plums were canning factories producing plum paste. In October, their place was taken by local and Romanian producers of alcoholic beverages. By now, late plums have finally reached the required sugar content, but their quality for the most part no longer fits the requirements of the “fresh market”. However, it suits this category of buyers. As a result, the purchase price for the lowest-quality industrial plum rose to 2.5-3 MDL/kg ($0.14-0.17/kg). Based on this level, producers increase the supply prices of more or less high-quality plums.
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