In order to find out about the situation of local fruits and vegetables, Sputnik Estonia went to one of the capital markets to find out what local vegetables and fruits are already on sale, and most importantly, how much will consumers have to pay for those tasty vitamins.
In the capital markets, it is currently already possible to buy Estonian strawberries, fresh potatoes, tomatoes, cucumbers, green onions, wild garlic, dill, parsley or chanterelles. After about a couple of weeks, there will be local raspberries and blueberries. Along with Estonian products, customers can also buy imported nectarines, plums, peaches, grapes, watermelons, melons and much more.
The owner and seller of a vegetable store in one of the capital markets, Victoria Urlova, told Sputnik Estonia that one of the earliest summer berries is strawberries. According to her, the sale of imported strawberries started in late May. "The first strawberries are brought from Greece and Spain, our local strawberries follow later, and then come the Lithuanian ones. This year, Estonian berries hit the market later than usual," explained Urlova.
Bad weather means high prices for strawberries
Victoria noted that the rainy and cold weather, which spoiled part of the harvest, has been the main reason for the high prices of the domestic production. Now the price for Estonian strawberries ranges from 4.50 to 6 Euro per kilogram, while the Polish were sold for 3.50 Euro. Prices also depend on the specific market.
The seller cannot yet say with certainty whether the price of local strawberries will fall or not, but she believes that if weather gets warmer, the harvest volume will grow, which should lead to cheaper prices.
Victoria Urlova noted that her customers prefer local products, but the price tag for those berries is one and a half to two times higher than that of imported goods, and therefore they usually take a smaller quantity of Estonian produce. For example, she managed to sell 100-150 kilograms of Polish and Greek strawberries per day, while Estonian strawberry sales reach just 50 kilograms per day.
