In the second half of July, an opposite price trend emerged on the Moldovan market in two berry segments: raspberries are getting more expensive, blackberries are getting cheaper. Berry farmers perceive the situation as “slightly unpleasant, but natural.”
The harvest of both berries in 2022 is low due to the drought. For both berries, local fruit freezing companies made big plans (purchasing 700-800 tonnes of raspberries and 300-400 tonnes of blackberries). In both cases industrial berry producers tried to lower prices at the beginning of the season – from 35 to 25 MDL/kg ($2.08-1.30/kg) for blackberries. Unlike raspberry producers, blackberry producers have not yet been able to agree on restoring prices to a more acceptable level.
As a result, unlike raspberries, fresh blackberries are sold exclusively on the domestic market – there is no export. And blackberries for freezing and exports are purchased at a relatively low price. In Moldovan retail, raspberries are much more demanded than blackberries and are offered at twice the price: 80-100 MDL/kg ($4.16-5.20/kg) versus 50-60 MDL/kg ($2.60-3.12/kg).
Wholesale prices for blackberries for the fresh market have been decreasing since the second week of this month – from 40 to 35 MDL/kg ($2.08-1.82/kg) on average. Blackberry prices during this period in 2021 were significantly and consistently higher – 40-45 MDL/kg. And in 2020, which is similar to 2022 in terms of weather conditions, blackberry prices increased in July.
The harvesting of the second most common and popular blackberry variety, Triple Crown, will begin in the coming days in Moldova. At least the first harvest of this berry will be good. Given the projected high supply, it is hardly possible to foresee an increase in blackberry prices in late July – early August.
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