Last season in terms of several characteristics, first – consistently high prices throughout the entire sales period – was abnormal for the Moldovan watermelon market. The start of the 2023 season is also distinguished by high prices, so far even higher than at the beginning of the 2022 season. But how long will this situation last? EastFruit analysts suggest there will most likely be no “price failures” in Moldova on the market of gourds in general and watermelon in particular.
Last year, a relatively high price level for the Moldovan watermelon market was ensured by unusual exports to Ukraine that lost supplies of the famous Kherson watermelon. This year, according to the Moldovan fruit market operators, the supply of watermelon to Ukraine will also maintain its high prices in Moldova but to a lesser extent than in 2022. At least because some western regions of Ukraine have significantly expanded the areas of watermelon plantations and, likely, will saturate the west and center of the country with this product. Accordingly, the supply of watermelon from Moldova will remain in the southeast direction, Odesa, Mykolaiv, and, possibly, some other regions. But exports there can hardly be considered reliable and stable.
Considering the well-established transport and other logistics schemes, export supplies of Moldovan gourds to Romania are more attractive to some market operators.
But the most stable, although certainly not the most expensive, market for Moldovan watermelon producers this season is likely to be the domestic market. Due to the cool spring, the sowing of melons, like many other fruit crops in Moldova, was delayed. As a result, the area of plantations of gourds, which usually fluctuates around 3 thousand hectares in the country, decreased by at least 25-30% in 2023. Even worse, last week, according to the fruit market operators, a significant part of melon plantations was badly damaged by hail. Considering all these circumstances, shipments of high-quality watermelon to all markets will be easy. At the same time, a significant import of watermelon to the Moldovan market in the second half of the summer is unlikely.
Imports of Greek watermelon to Moldova in 2023 started at the end of May. Wholesale prices for its sale on the domestic market, according to EastFruit monitoring, were unprecedentedly high (16-18 lei/kg, $0.9-1.01/kg) for almost three weeks. In part because the first local watermelon from the covered plantations they were selling at an even higher price – 20-23 lei/kg ($1.11-1.27/kg) and more.
However, during the first week of July, the average wholesale price for local watermelon fell by half – to 9-10 lei/kg ($0.49-0.54/kg). Despite it, the price is still at least 25-30% higher than during the same period of the watermelon season in the previous five to six years. And it is not the fact that the price level will drop sharply soon.
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