May 10 2011, 11:16 Fruit-Inform

Fruit and vegetable prices keeping their menacing growth in Ukraine

Fruit-Inform Project's fruit and vegetable index shows that fruit and vegetable prices have again grown in Ukraine last week. This time, a week-on-week growth of fruit and vegetable prices amounted to 2.1% predominantly due to increased prices for traditional vegetables and potatoes. In such a way, the cost of Ukrainian consumers' fruit and vegetable basket keeps on setting new records week after week.

Borsch vegetables (onions, cabbage, beets, and carrots) and potatoes averagely increased in price by 2.9% last week primarily due to sharp growth of beet and potato prices. As to cabbage prices, they decreased for the first time over long period thanks to growth in early cabbage supply from Ukraine and more southern regions of Europe.

Analysts of Fruit-Inform Project note that, notwithstanding cool weather, decrease of prices nevertheless started for greenhouse vegetable segment: cucumbers and tomatoes became cheaper. Overall week-on-week fall of greenhouse vegetable prices amounted to 10.6%.

Fruits kept on growing in price due to increased prices for imported citrus. On the other hand, sharp decrease of consumption of imported fruits is foreseen already in late May thanks to domestic garden strawberries and early vegetables expected to enter the market more actively. However, due to decrease of average daily temperatures, garden strawberry prices slightly grew last week.

More detailed information about berry season prospects and new market niches in this dynamically growing segment will be included in speeches of leading experts of this business during the Second International Conference “Berries of Ukraine-2011: Freezing and Fresh Market”. Application form is available through this link.