According to the chairman of the Association of Potato Breeders of the Republic of Moldova Petr Iliev, a very alarming situation has developed in this industry.
During the second half of the last decade, in the country, farmers reduced agricultural land allocated for growing potatoes by 1-2 thousand hectares annually. As a result, by 2019, potato crops in Moldova were reduced to 19 thousand ha. Harvest from such an area is able to cover only about 60-70% of the food needs of the population of Moldova. The consequence of this process was an increase in the price of potatoes in the country and its intensive import.
In the winter of 2018, Moldova experienced an unprecedented jump in potato prices (by more than 40% over a month and a half) due to a decrease in both domestic stocks and imports. However, the crisis situation - “abnormally high prices” - did not stimulate growth or even stabilization of potato production in the country. Moreover, according to Petr Iliev, instead of stimulating domestic potato growing with targeted subsidies, for example, for planting material and irrigation, the Moldovan authorities have activated the mechanism of liberalization of the country's domestic market. In particular, the Ministry of Agriculture (MADRM) and the National Agency for Food Safety ANSA agreed to admit potatoes damaged by certain diseases (rot) to Moldova. The prevailing opinion was that such products - of poor quality, but cheap - entering the food market would prevent a sharp rise in prices, but at the same time would not lead to a significant increase in phytosanitary risks in the potato production sector.
As a result, according to ANSA, only in August-September 2019, out of 130 batches of imported potatoes imported into Moldova by road, quarantine pathogens were detected in 116. It can be assumed that by the end of last year the situation with the quality of imported potatoes (or rather - its safety) is hardly noticeably improved. At the same time, the head of the Association of Potato Breeders of the Republic of Moldova suggests that not all imported potatoes infected with quarantine pathogens came exclusively to the food market. He does not exclude the possibility that small imported potatoes were used (and will be used) as seed material. Meanwhile, in the vegetable industry of Moldova, due to widespread violation of crop rotation standards, an already tense phytosanitary situation has developed.
At its “exit”, the Moldovan consumer temporarily received a “bonus” in the form of relatively low prices for potatoes. Due to intensive import of products last fall, the average wholesale prices for potatoes in Moldova since August have been in the range of 5-7 lei / kg ($ 0,3-0,4 / kg), which roughly corresponds to their usual fall level in the last five years. Since October 2019, Moldovan potato growers periodically appear in the domestic media with forecasts (or rather, hopes) for seasonal price increases. However, they did not come true until the end of December last year. At the beginning of this year, according to the observations of members of the potato growers association, the "vacation period" continues, there is no increase in demand and prices for products.
In this situation, the forecast of the leadership of the industry association for the coming season is pessimistic: agricultural areas under the potatoes will not grow, and possibly decrease, the dependence of the Moldovan domestic market on product imports will increase even more.
Source: https://east-fruit.com/