Information for fruit and vegetables business in CIS
Romania: Fresh produce sales down 30% compared to last autumn
Fruit and vegetable sales in Romanian markets and retail chains have decreased by approximately 30% compared to last autumn. Romanians increasingly prefer to buy more ready meals and canned foods, as reported by Aurel Tanase, chief executive for fruits and vegetables at the interprofessional organization Prodcom.
"The explanation is that people are consuming more and more canned foods; a market which has developed quite a lot, with investments in canneries amounting to over 150 million Euro. More consumers are choosing to purchase ready-made products because of their convenience compared to buying fresh vegetables," he said.
Consequently, fruit and vegetable sales have decreased this year, and the decline is even deeper in autumn.
"Because of the low sales, prices have fallen below expectations. In August and September, prices dropped by 10-15% compared to the same period last year," said Tanase.
He says producers "are very upset," since they are failing to cover their costs.
Tanase assures that the decline is recorded not only in markets, but also in supermarkets. Sales have decreased for both domestic and imported fruit and vegetables.