January 11 2007, 13:30

The increased losses of the stored vegetables this season can lead to the reconsideration of the price forecast for spring 2007

Warm weather in Ukraine influences the market situation, in particular vegetable supply and demand. The overall majority of the producers store potato and other vegetables in the inappropriate storages which temperature depends on the air temperature. That's why even the top quality produce of 2006 harvest starts sprouting and spoiling.

The losses of produce in the storages are relatively small, but the storage owners have to bear additional expenses to sort the products. Also, most of them think that it will be impossible to store produce till spring if warm weather keeps on going.

As a result, according to the forecasts of the experts of "Agrooglyad: Vegetables and Fruits" journal, large shipments of potato, carrot, table beets and cabbage of medium and low quality will hit the market soon. These products will be sold for lower than now prices in order to cover at least a part of the production cost of these vegetables. At the same time, the specialists think that the prices for quality vegetables can grow soon. Quality potato has the best perspective to grow in price in February.

We remind that as a result of severe temperature drop a most part of vegetables was lost in storages late January 2006. According to the experts' evaluations, those days past year Ukrainian producers and wholesalers lost 20-25% of all vegetables stored. If warm weather is preserved in winter 2007, the loss rate for the stored produce can exceed the past year data.