Information for fruit and vegetables business in CIS
Imported cucumber drives local products out of Odesa markets
Imported cucumbers are actively supplied on Odesa oblast markets forming the overwhelming share in retail trade. Locally produced commodities are almost absent on market.
To vendors' opinion, strong points of imported commodities are uniform cucumber quality and special handy packing. The supplies of imported smooth greenhouse cucumber grew, so that small wholesale prices dropped down from $ 1.66-1.76/kg past week to $1.37-1.47/kg this week.
The consumers prefer to buy products of national origin, as Dmitrij Chernyak says, the Market Information Specialists of Odesa office, Agricultural Marketing Project (AMP). However, local products cost now higher, small wholesale price on Ukrainian cucumber has been $ 1.76-1.96/kg for the second week already.
Wholesale prices on imported cucumber decreased, retail prices decreased proportionally too; it is confirmed by the results of AMP retail price monitoring on the central Privoz market in Odesa. Still, the prices are $ 0.29-0.39/kg higher as compared to the same period of time a year ago. Most probably, the price decrease is temporary. Taking into account the dynamics of retail price growth, cucumber prices will continue growing closer to the holidays. Mr. Chernyak said that cucumber retail price reached $ 2.35/kg on Privoz market in December 2004, and was about $ 3.1-3.5/kg during the New Year holidays.