Ukrainian blueberries not only increased their presence on European shelves but also maintained a better price on the domestic market compared to last year. President of the Ukrainian Fruit and Vegetable Association, Taras Bashtannik, shared this information in a comment for SEEDS, as reported by Ukrainian Horticultural Association (UHA).
“If we break it down by main crops, blueberries have significantly increased their exports this year. This is thanks to the largest Ukrainian producers and exporters. It not only increased the presence of Ukrainian blueberries on European shelves but also maintained a good price, 20% higher than last year, on the domestic market. This happened because the market freed up a bit for smaller and medium-sized producers and those who did not export,” said Taras Bashtannik.
He believes that during the second year of the war, the business did not change significantly, at least not for the worse. All the factors present in the market were determined by the market itself, not the war.
“The raspberry market was forecasted to be low-priced. There’s nothing new or strange about it. Next year, there should be some adjustment towards a higher price for raspberries, but not significantly—no more than 15-20%.
As for blueberries, I think Ukraine will continue to increase its presence in Europe in terms of exports. Therefore, I believe the blueberry market can be expected to be at the same level as this year. At least, this is an optimistic, good scenario,” said the president of UHA.
A completely different situation occurred this season with garden strawberries, which received significant adjustments from the Kherson region.
“The market for garden strawberries was traditionally lively and active, while the export was not as lively and active, as has been the case for quite a few years because there is high competition from frozen strawberries from Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia. Therefore, Ukrainian producers find it very difficult to compete, almost impossible.
So, in fact, the question is only about offering berries to the fresh market. But after the situation, hopefully temporary, with Kherson, the market for fresh strawberries is not as saturated.
As for storage of fresh fruits and frozen berries during the season, I don’t know. What will happen with electricity can only be guessed, but I am confident that Ukrainian farmers will be more prepared for possible power outages and so on,” Taras Bashtannik predicts.