Ultra-early potatoes became available in supermarkets of Uzbekistan

For several days now, consumers in the capital of Uzbekistan have been able to buy ultra-early potatoes of the current year’s harvest from film greenhouses. However, this novelty of the season became available about a month later this year and at an average price 1.5 times higher than last year due to the abnormal cold in January, EastFruit experts note.

On March 25, 2023, the Makro supermarket chain announced the start of sales of ultra-early potatoes at a retail price of 33,990 UZS/kg ($3.0) in its stores in the capital of Uzbekistan.

Last year, this season’s novelty appeared in the supermarkets of the capital of Uzbekistan much earlier and at a price much lower than this season. Sales of ultra-early potatoes in the same supermarket chain in 2022 started on February 21 at a price of 22 990 UZS/kg ($2.1) and the prices dropped to 19 990 UZS/kg ($1.8) in two days.

As of February 26, 2022, retail prices for early potatoes in supermarkets in the capital of Uzbekistan ranged from 15 990 to 19 990 UZS/kg (from $1.5 to $1.8).

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In other words, the season’s novelty became available in retail sales this year a little more than a month later and at an average price of 1.5 times more than in 2022. The reason is the anomalous cold observed in Uzbekistan on January 10-16, 2023. The air temperature during this period in the country’s capital during the day dropped to -13° C, and at night to -17° C. Starting from January 17, there has been a very gradual warming – up to the 25th of January, the temperature during the day was slightly above zero, and at night it dropped to -7° C. The most favorable weather conditions for planting ultra-early potatoes in film greenhouses in the southern regions of Uzbekistan, where they usually come from, were established only at the end of January and the first ten days of February of this year.