Demand for root vegetables is not evenly distributed on the Polish market

Demand for root vegetables on the Polish wholesale market remains quite varied. There is one clear leader in this group. This is beetroot, the prices of which have been at a record high level on the wholesale market since December last year. In the last decade of April there was a downturn in this segment of the fresh vegetable trade, but it proved to be short-lived, as can be seen in the graph below.

 Currently, the price of washed beet, packed in bags, is 1.30-1.80 PLN/kg in the large wholesalers. According to information coming from the market and seed traders, the popularity of beetroot growing will be significantly higher in the new season. But will this vegetable live up to expectations? The main factor that determined such dynamics of beet prices was the situation in Ukraine. The supply of beet there was already too low before the war and the Russian invasion has exacerbated the problem.

Other root crops are faring much worse. The situation on the celery market has been very poor, but the last decade of April has improved the situation somewhat, and the prices of washed and bagged celery have increased by 27 per cent at the large wholesaler and are at 1.90-2.30 PLN/kg, but the chart shows that this is nothing unusual compared to previous years.

The situation is slightly different for carrots. Here we had a clear upward trend at the end of March and the beginning of April. However, the situation on the European carrot market, especially the oversupply in the Netherlands, already caused us to be cautiously optimistic about a continuation of this trend. The fears were confirmed and the rise was halted, followed by a downward correction. At the moment, prices for brushed and bagged carrots are most often between 1.10 and 1.30 PLN/kg at the large wholesaler and, as the chart shows, this is a fairly average level for this phase of the season.

Parsley is the worst priced product. Here the spring part of the season is very disappointing. Instead of the expected increase in wholesale prices, we have seen a decline, as a result of which parsley washed and packed in bags is offered at 2.80-3.40 PLN/kg in the large wholesalers, which is low for this vegetable. This observation is confirmed in the chart below.