No Profit For Belarusian Strawberry Farmers

In Belarus, the strawberry business has lost its attractiveness.

The strawberry market in the village of Dvarets in the Luninets District, where sellers and wholesale buyers of strawberries come every year in June, seems to be seeing hard times. Purchase prices for berries have fallen significantly since last year, and this business has lost its commercial attractiveness, Belsat reports.

Farmer Aliaksei Turkevich has a strawberry plantation of 1 hectare in size. He uses modern agricultural technology, the cultivation beds are equipped with drip irrigation, he grows strawberries of a rather yielding variety “Kimberley”.

During the season, Aliaksei has up to 30 employees who harvest and sort the strawberries. The hired workers receive 3.5 rubles per hour. Aliaksei himself transports his berries to Moscow in the hot June weeks in a special truck, where according to the contract, he pays for the price of one and a half dollars per kilogram.

For the season, which lasts three weeks, Aliaksei makes up to five trips. The total harvest of strawberries over the summer is 15 tons.

At the first glance, the cultivation of strawberries is a profitable business, but now Aliaksei doubts whether he should plant a berry plantation on additional hectares, which he has already leased.

First, this business requires considerable expenses (for two years, Aliaksei spent on organizing the plantation about 20 thousand dollars. Also, a car for the berries deliveries cost 18 thousand). Secondly, growing strawberries is quite risky due to the unpredictability of the berry prices.

“The price is completely dependent on supply and demand. This year the price plummeted due to the increase in supply in the market. But the manufacturer has nowhere to go in such a situation: we have to agree to a very low price for wholesale buyers, because the berries spoil rapidly,” says Aliaksei.

The season began early and coincided with the season in Krasnodar

The sharp increase in supply, according to Aliaksei, is due to the fact that the strawberry season in Belarus began early and coincided with the season of Krasnodar strawberry.

Most villagers are forced to hand over the berries at prices dictated by the market in Dvarets. This year, average season prices are almost 40% lower than last year. At the same time, prices change every day.

For example, on June 15, dealers took fresh strawberries at a price of 1 ruble or 1 ruble 20 kapeykas per kilogram. The Belarusian Customers Union today accepts the tradeable berries at 50 kapeykas per kilo, and the ones that have become leaky - at 30 kapeykas.

The market is full of excitement. People come from all over the Luninets district: some on cars, some on bicycles with buckets hanging all over them. Everyone is trying to sell their berries as quickly and as expensive as possible, until they have lost their good looks.

The procurement system can save the situation

The release of large quantities of strawberries to the market due to the hot summer provoked a dramatic situation in which small berry producers found themselves in the Luninets district. A week ago, the purchase price for strawberries approached the cost of just collecting it. That is, those who grow berries, were left without profit.

“Almost all the owners hire people to harvest. A worker can pick 12-18 kg per hour. Thus, the cost of only picking the strawberries is 30 kapeykas per kilogram. And if a week ago there was a period when they paid 60 kapeykas for the berries of high quality, and 20 kapeykas for the berries, which began to leak a little (to make wine) in the market, then people were freaking out and saying: well, down with these berries, we will dig everything up and plant potatoes ”, director of the market in the village of Dvarets Ihar Prakapovich explains the situation.

Wealthier owners bring berries to Baranavichy or Minsk in their own cars. More serious agro-businessmen go to Russia.

According to the director of the market, about 25% of strawberries go to Russia, the rest - to the Belarusian market. Carriers receive their portion of risk, since no one can guarantee that the berries will not spoil on the way.

The annual price fever in the market, which is wild in a certain sense, could be cured by the procurement system at pre-agreed prices, and by freezing the berries on an industrial scale. However, for the time being there is a tendency among growers to switch to remontant strawberry varieties that bear fruit until autumn, since in the traditional “out of season” the demand for strawberries, and with it the purchase prices, increase sharply.