Blueberry prices have interrupted the upward trend, but...
Wholesale prices of American blueberries on the Polish market began to rebound from their lowest point at the beginning of the last decade of last month. Between July 21 and 30, the selling prices of these fruits offered in bulk increased by one-fifth. As we can see in the chart above, the average price of blueberries in bulk managed to rise above the quotes from all five previous seasons. The reason for such an effective increase in the prices of these fruits was the weather. Unfavorable weather conditions halted the growth of current harvests during a period that is typically the peak supply for these fruits. The weather improved momentarily last week, which was enough to resume the increase in blueberry supply, causing wholesale prices to pause their upward trend.
Currently, we have selling prices in bulk ranging from 10.00 to 18.00 PLN/kg, which is approximately 2.33 to 4.19 EUR/kg. The difference from the last peak price is about -7 percent. Not much, but will the price drop be deeper? As usual, everything depends on the weather. If it remains stable and without extremes, blueberry prices may still fall. But if they do, it won't be much and it won't last long. More likely, there will be a quick return to the upward trend in their wholesale prices, as blueberries are definitively moving out of the peak harvesting phase.
Regarding the harvests, the Central Statistical Office (GUS) published their preliminary estimate last week. In the case of American blueberries (highbush), experts predict this year's harvest at 62.8 thousand tons, although in the case of these fruits, final data will likely be different (the preliminary estimate is based on data collected until the beginning of July). A comparison of these estimated harvests for this year with previous years is shown in the chart below. There are expected to be slightly more blueberries this year compared to last year (+1.5 percent). The difference is not significant, but it is notable in a season where fruits generally record much worse harvests year over year. Blueberries have a different trend due to the fact that full fruiting begins on young plantations, and the quantities of harvested blueberries will be greater even despite poorer yields.