July 19 2013, 10:05 Fruit-Inform

Ukrainian watermelon exports to be record high

Ukraine expands its watermelon exports geography. A week ago watermelons were exported only to Poland. This week Poland was joined by the Baltic states and Belarus. Fruit-Inform analysts expect Ukrainian watermelon exports to be record high in the current season.

“We expect the highest over the past 5 years watermelon production in Ukraine thanks to larger areas under this crop in the country in 2013”, says Ms Tetiana Getman, Head of Fruit-Inform. “It is logical that exports may also be record high. However, expectations will come true only under conditions of high quality of produce, otherwise farmers will have to sell their watermelons in the internal market, which will provoke a significant decrease in prices”.

For the present, watermelon prices keep on decreasing in Ukraine. Current prices vary between UAH 0.80-1.50/kg (EUR 0.08-0.14/kg), a decrease of 17-20% from the previous week and the mid-July 2012. A decrease in prices is connected with a seasonal growth in supply. At the same time, the demand for watermelons in rather high now both internally and externally.