According to a report by EastFruit, early cabbage and onions from Uzbekistan have made their way onto the shelves of supermarkets in Riga, Latvia. Despite the considerable distance these products had to travel, they turned out to be remarkably affordable.
Specifically, Uzbek onions are retailing at €0.75 per kilogram, while early cabbage is priced at €0.69 per kilogram. Even considering delivery costs of at least 35 cents per kilogram, the quality of the produce, as depicted in the photos, does not appear exceptionally high.
For the European Union, however, these prices are remarkably low. The region has faced natural anomalies for the past two years. During the critical growth period for onions in major producing regions, there was unusual drought and abnormally hot weather. Subsequently, during onion harvesting, prolonged rains occurred. These conditions adversely affected onion quality and yield, resulting in elevated prices throughout the season.
Read also: Harvest of Uzbekistan’s cherries is delayed – are prices and exports likely to be impacted?
Meanwhile, in Uzbekistan and other Central Asian countries, onion prices hit record lows. Those who stored onions during harvest to profit from resale incurred significant losses, as they either had to discard the surplus onions or feed them to animals.
As a consequence, new harvest onions are currently being sold at exceptionally low prices, with minimal demand. In Uzbekistan, new harvest onions can be purchased for 9 U.S. cents, approximately equivalent to 8 euro cents. Despite expensive logistics, exporting such onions to the European Union remains profitable. The situation for cabbage is similarly challenging—prices are rapidly decreasing, while demand remains subdued.
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