Information for fruit and vegetables business in CIS
Ukraine: prices of tomatoes for processing reach record high
Ukrainian processors are forced to purchase raw tomatoes at record high prices this year, according to Fruit-Inform.
For the present, prices of tomatoes for canning are similar to those fixed in the fresh market and vary between UAH 2.20-2.80/kg (USD 0.09-0.12/kg). For comparison, prices in early September have never been higher than UAH 2.50/kg over the past five years.
Tomatoes for juices and pastes are offered at UAH 1.50-1.80/kg (USD 0.06-0.09/kg), twice as high as last year and 50-100% higher than average over the past 5 years.
Processors connect such high price levels with lower tomato production in Ukraine. In addition, farmers are more interested in the fresh market and are not ready to ship tomatoes at lower prices to canneries in the majority of cases.
At the same time, processors are rather optimistic and still have no plans to reduce their tomato processing volumes.