According to EastFruit sources from Georgia, specialized professional blueberry picking crews from Ukraine have appeared in this country. They are significantly more expensive than local workers, but according to farmers, their productivity is twice as high, which not only allows for faster harvesting and maintaining berry quality but also reduces the cost of harvesting 1 kg of berries.
Of course, for many people this news will seem sensational. After all, pickers from Ukraine usually went west to earn money, not east, and in particular, a significant portion of blueberries in Poland were harvested by workers from Ukraine. Moreover, in recent years, Ukrainians increasingly went further west, where berry harvesting rates were higher than in Poland. And now Georgia – seems like a sensational term but it is?
The only sensation here is how brilliantly logical and profitable this move is on the part of Ukrainian berry pickers. Having learned to harvest berries professionally, Ukrainians formed specialized performance-driven teams and decided to maximize the monetization of their skills. The fact is that in each country, the berry season lasts on average only a couple of months. This means that to earn more money, it makes sense to offer services to several countries with different blueberry harvest seasons.
Read also: From Zakarpattia to London: “Blue Berry LLC” Strengthens Its Position in Blueberry Exports
Since blueberry picking in Poland begins a month earlier than in Ukraine, Ukrainian picking crews head to that country first. Incidentally, the rates for blueberry picking in Georgia are even higher than in Ukraine. Then they move to Ukraine, where blueberry picking begins earlier than in Poland. And after Ukraine, they can move to Poland or work the entire season in Ukraine, where wages for professional blueberry pickers are currently often no lower than in the neighboring EU member country. Ukraine’s blueberry season is also longer than in either Poland or Georgia.
It should be noted that both Ukraine and Georgia are among the world’s fastest-growing blueberry exporters globally. It turns out that Ukrainian pickers are contributing to the development of Georgia’s blueberry business as well.
Over the past three years, Georgia has increased its fresh blueberry exports almost 5-fold to 5 thousand tons in 2024. Moreover, an increasingly significant portion of Georgian blueberries is supplied to EU countries, primarily Germany, Poland, and the Netherlands.
Ukraine increased its blueberry exports 3-fold over the same period to 6 thousand tons in 2024. Furthermore, in 2024, the Netherlands overtook Poland for the first time in the ranking of the largest importers of Ukrainian blueberries. The UK, Spain, and Germany are also among the leading importers of Ukrainian blueberries. In total, in 2024, Ukraine supplied fresh blueberries to 15 countries worldwide.
The use of the site materials is free if there is a direct and open for search engines hyperlink to a specific publication of the East-Fruit.com website.
