In the W23 in the cherry landscape, in Italy, there is a slight price increase for Spanish cherries, due to low availability of domestically produced Italian cherries, resulting from the effects of bad weather. The heavy rains have in fact ruined the domestic cherry fruit and, at the moment, there is no regular quantity level in the markets. French cherries, with low availability in the market, are a little more expensive in 2023. The President of the Association of Producers (AOP) of Cherries indicates that there is low production in 2023, following a big harvest in 2022 since the cherry trees are exhausted. Also, the French production basins did not harvest at the same time, which made it possible to spread out the production volumes. As a result, low supply and high demand for French cherries lead to high prices, trading at USD 9.76-10.84/kg. Despite the rainy weather, French cherries have standard quality, with large sizes. The president of AOP also indicated that there are still 3 weeks left of the French cherry harvest, which is expected to last until the beginning of July.
UPOA reports that Ukrainian cherry prices vary significantly depending on the region of origin, variety, and quality from USD 8.15/kg to USD 27.15/kg. This difference is connected with the beginning of the season and the majority of import offers from Turkey, Poland, Azerbaijan, and Spain. In W22, the first batches of Ukrainian cherries from Odesa, Mykolaiv Oblast, Vinnytsia, and Transcarpathia appeared on the market. Experts indicate that Ukrainian cherries are sold in small wholesale at prices of USD 1.64-2.32/kg, which corresponds to the prices for cherries at the beginning of the 2022 season. In 2022, EastFruit fixed the average wholesale price for a kilogram of the first early cherries in the same period in the south and west of Ukraine in the range of USD 2.05-2.22/kg and USD 2.39−2.73/kg. MINAGRO indicates that sky-high prices for cherries in Ukraine are due to the fact that the main production regions (Melitopol) are occupied, a delay in ripening as a result of a cool spring, and the presence of imported berries on the Ukrainian market. Ukrainian First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food, Taras Vysotskyi said that before the full-scale invasion of the market due to the Russia-Ukraine war, the first domestic cherry producers to leave were those located in the area of the now-occupied Melitopol. Notably, on May 31st, at the Shuvar wholesale market in Lviv, cherries were sold for USD 2.72-4.07/kg.
Hail storms in West Greece, thunderstorms in North Greece, and high humidity concentrations in May damaged all early stone fruit varieties. Cherries were torn just a few days before picking, apricots thrown down from the trees, and peaches and nectarines mechanically damaged, devaluating the 2023 season's yield. The damage is around 40%, especially for early cherries and apricots, while peaches and nectarines are expected to be about 20% but are still being evaluated. The Greek stone fruit season is generally projected to have gotten off to a dismal start, with a significant loss expected in revenue for the entire industry. Lastly, from the first days of June-2023, the process of reducing prices for cherries has been accelerating in the Moldovan market. It is noted that the starting price level for domestic sweet cherries of early varieties, trading at USD 1.96-2.24/kg, lasted only a few days. By the middle of W23, the wholesale price fell to USD 1.40-1.51/kg, while in retail the minimum price tag dropped to USD 1.57-1.68/kg. The domestic early sweet cherry appeared on the Moldovan market 1-2 weeks later than in the previous three years. This is also the reason why 3-4 weeks ago, a rare case of imported Spanish and Greek cherries appeared on the Moldovan market, which was first sold in retail at a cosmic price of USD 19.66-25.28/kg. By the time domestic cherries appeared on the Moldovan market, imported cherries fell in price in boutique and chain retailers to USD 2.24-2.80/kg. Imported sweet cherries, which differ by their larger size and stage of maturity, are still present in the Moldovan market. However, this product is quickly losing its presentable appearance and is sold at a big discount. As a result, there is a rather rapid decline in wholesale prices for cherries, which is in principle typical for the first half of June.
