Trading networks are faced with a shortage of open ground vegetables and a sharp increase in prices for them, primarily for cabbage and carrots, reports “Kommersant”.
The Russian harvest of 2021 is ending, young cabbage in Turkey, Egypt and Uzbekistan is not yet ripe, a number of local producers may hold back the sale of vegetables, expecting prices to rise. The Ministry of Agriculture excludes the risk of a shortage of vegetables, noting the growing imports.
The fact that retail chains are faced with a shortage of open-ground vegetables and a sharp increase in purchase prices for this category was told by four Kommersant sources in grocery retail. According to them, first of all, the problem arose with white cabbage, especially the Russian crop, and there are also difficulties with the availability of carrots and beets.
From March 1 to March 27, prices for cabbage from suppliers increased by 56%, for carrots - by 47%, for beets - by 62%, says a Kommersant source in a large network. According to him, in general, the growth in purchase prices is not fully translated to the shelf.
According to Rosstat, from the end of February to March 18, the price of cabbage in retail increased by an average of 11,14%, carrots - by 10,73%. According to Kommersant's calculations based on data from online storefronts, in Moscow, in a number of large chains, prices for cabbage increased by 17–25% from March 25 to March 30, to 89–130 rubles. per 1 kg, for carrots - by 11–22%, up to 49,9–59,5 rubles. for 1 kg.
Two interlocutors of Kommersant in retail chains note that the traditional season of 1-1,5 months begins, when last year's local vegetables are over, and imports enter the market.
There is some shortage of cabbage, because this year the Russian one ended before the mass ripening of young cabbage in Uzbekistan, Turkey and Egypt, which additionally affects the price dynamics, a Kommersant source in a large network explained.
The interlocutor of "Kommersant" in the industry believes that some agricultural producers with storage facilities may also hold back sales, expecting higher prices. Major networks officially do not comment on the topic. Only in Metro they assured that they did not observe any difficulties with the supply of vegetables.
Aleksey Krasilnikov, Executive Director of the Union of Potato and Vegetable Market Participants, notes that in 2021 the area under cabbage was noticeably reduced after several consecutive failed seasons for the product. According to Rosstat, in 2021, the area under cabbage in farms of all categories decreased by 7,2%, to 71,3 thousand hectares, the gross harvest decreased by 10,4%, to 2,37 million tons.
Russian vegetable producers entered this spring season with low stocks: according to Rosstat, as of March 1, large enterprises had 156,1 thousand tons in storage, which is 35% less year-on-year, Mr. Krasilnikov adds.
Mukhazhir Etuyev, general director of the vegetable producer Prinevskoye, notes that due to low profitability, many farms have abandoned the cultivation of cabbage in the past few years. The vegetable is harder to store and requires more manual labor to harvest, he points out.
The Predportovy farm says that the last year's cabbage harvest was sold out in March, and the industry's difficulties stem from a lack of storage facilities that require large investments.
The Ministry of Agriculture told Kommersant that there was no risk of a shortage of vegetables on the domestic market. According to customs data, from the beginning of this year to March 20, imports of potatoes to Russia grew by 5%, carrots, turnips and table beets - by 7,8%, and cabbage - by 39,1% year-on-year. Deliveries from Egypt, China, Turkey, Israel and Azerbaijan are stable, and until September 30, vegetables are reset to zero import duties, noted in the Ministry of Agriculture. They added that the arrival of a new crop of vegetables on the market contributes to the stabilization of the price situation.
As Aleksey Krasilnikov notes, high prices also carry risks for producers. In 2010-2011, after a drought, prices for outdoor vegetables rose so much that consumers began to abandon them in favor of cereals and pasta, he recalls.
In 2022, adds Krasilnikov, the Russian Federation is expected to increase the area under open ground vegetables by 20 hectares, including through incentive measures from the Ministry of Agriculture.