Blueberries – Has the Price Decline Slowed Down?

The 2024 highbush blueberry season in Poland had a very unfavorable start for producers. Wholesale prices for these fruits were lower from the start of the campaign compared to previous years, and in the second half of June, they experienced a sharp decline. The unfavorable price situation in the wholesale market for fresh blueberries is evident in our chart.

However, at the beginning of this month, the sharp downward trend has been halted. This was partly due to the fact that imported blueberries are no longer getting cheaper, and they also play a smaller role in the overall supply of these fruits in the fresh market. But we also see other positive phenomena.

Firstly, the demand for blueberries is now at a good level. These fruits have gained consumer interest because they are relatively cheap, and in addition, the competition from strawberries is disappearing from the market. At the same time, we observe a halt in the decline in prices for dessert raspberries, which also favors the stabilization of blueberry prices.

Moreover, there is good demand for blueberries for processing, which means that lower quality fruits are disappearing from the fresh market. These lower quality fruits were initially offered at lower prices, dragging down the entire fresh market. The strong demand for processing blueberries is largely due to the fact that processing plants do not have other fruits. Strawberries are essentially finished, currants are almost gone, and they are expensive. Additionally, there is not an excess of cherries for processing either.

Currently, the purchase prices for blueberries for processing are at the level of 1.52-1.63 EUR/kg. Last year, the season started slightly better price-wise (up to 1.87 EUR/kg), but then prices quickly plummeted (down to 1.05-1.28 EUR/kg). As for the prices of blueberries in large wholesale in the fresh market, it is currently most often 2.57-3.97 EUR/kg. This is still lower than in the previous five seasons, but if the current prices remain stable for some time, the comparison to previous years would improve significantly. But will they remain stable?