December 2 2013, 17:29 Fruit-Inform

Ukraine: prices of potatoes and vegetables 4.5 times as high as last year

Fruit-Inform's Ukrainian fresh produce price index shows a year-on-year increase of 349.9% in prices of potatoes and traditional vegetables (onions, carrots, white cabbage, red beets) in the country.

“Such a sharp increase in prices compared with last year is connected with smaller areas under those crops together with unfavorable weather conditions in vegetation period. However, it should be noted that potato and vegetable prices were record low in the same period of the previous season”, says Ms. Tetiana Getman, Head of Fruit-Inform. “Current onion prices are 6.2 times of those registered in early December 2012. Potato prices grew 4.8 times compared with last year. At the same time, white cabbage prices are now lower year-on-year, and prices of carrots and red beets went up just by 20-50%”.

It should also be noted that prices of potatoes and onions are record high now. Furthermore, almost all market participants expect a further increase in them, while Fruit-Inform experts warn that ongoing price growth may provoke a significant rise in imports of those products.