The local blueberry season in Poland is nearly over, marked by a clear decrease in local berry availability compared to the same period last year. This scarcity is reflected in significantly higher prices, currently ranging from $11.49 to $14.84/kg – an average increase of 83% compared to the end of the previous season. The substantial price difference is attributed not only to reduced local blueberry supplies but also to significantly lower imports from South America, leading to higher wholesale prices in this segment.
Currently, prices for Peruvian blueberries in the Polish market vary from $16.27 to $17.71/kg, on average twice as expensive as in early November last year. Global information indicates a long-term, possibly permanent, supply crisis in this fruit market segment. This is a consequence of a massive reduction in blueberry production in Peru, the world's leading exporter of these berries, with an estimated yield decrease of at least 30% this season, resulting in a significant gap in global supply. While Chile may benefit from its competitor's issues, Chilean blueberries will not fill such a large gap, and their season starts somewhat later.
Additionally, problems have arisen in the western Mediterranean, where powerful storms in the last decade of October seriously damaged blueberry plantations in southern Spain. Consequently, in the second half of the import season, the availability of Spanish blackberries will also be lower than normal. In Morocco, on the other side of the Mediterranean, vegetation is progressing faster, and though losses due to unfavourable weather were not as significant, reports indicate damage to blueberry plantations, leading to a substantial reduction in imports to the Polish market and much higher prices.
source: east-fruit.com