Why are strawberry prices high this year, and how do greenhouse strawberries differ from open-field strawberries?
Greenhouse strawberries hit the market in small volumes at high prices; analyst: prices may fall next month
According to a report by China Rural Voice's "Sannong China," right now these strawberries "grown in the greenhouse" are also beginning to hit the market one after another. The freshly marketed strawberries make many consumers want to have a taste, but the current wholesale price of strawberries is as high as twenty to thirty yuan per jin, and the retail price has even climbed to thirty-five, considerably higher than in previous years, leaving everyone crying out that they "can't afford to eat them." So why are strawberry prices high this year? And what are the differences between greenhouse strawberries and open-field strawberries?
Early in the morning, in the fields of Guanlu Village, Yangcunqiao Town, Jiande City, Zhejiang Province, farmers are busy harvesting fresh fruit. This year, the local area has planted about 5,000 mu of pollution-free strawberries. Because of the recent fine weather, abundant sunshine and suitable temperatures, the first peak picking season for the first batch of fresh strawberries has arrived, with the town's daily picking volume reaching more than 50,000 kg, sold to markets in Hangzhou, Nanjing, Shanghai and other places.
But in Hangzhou's Wenhui Fruit Wholesale Market, strawberries are still a rare commodity, with only a few stalls in the whole market selling them, at prices ranging from 25 to 28 yuan per jin. The vendors explain that the strawberries currently on sale are mainly self-produced and self-sold from Jiande and other places, and there is no large-scale distribution.
Vendor: Prices are a bit high this year. All in all, the taste is good, but there's just no yield. In previous years there were lots, but this year strawberries are very few.
A fruit vendor in Jiande City told reporters that compared with previous years, the time when this year's first batch of strawberries hit the market was slightly delayed, the yield fell compared with last year, and the taste is not as good as last year's. At the same time, strawberry sales are not very good, and they are mainly supplied to bakeries, dessert shops and the like.
Vendor: It used to be more than 30,000 in sales, now it's 10,000 or 20,000, and the reason is that now there are things like Taobao, direct sales from the place of origin.
In Hangzhou's fruit retail stores, because the market volume is relatively small, most stallholders sell by the basin, and the price of strawberries reaches 35 yuan per jin. Among the public, many ask about them but few buy them. Mr. Wang, who came to buy fruit, told reporters that he had originally planned to buy strawberries for a taste, but after seeing such a high price, he decided to pick other fruits.
Mr. Wang: Because this year's price is more expensive than in previous years, I'll pick other fruits.
According to preliminary statistics, Hangzhou's total local strawberry output fell by about 40 percent compared with last year, causing strawberry prices to rise somewhat. And by around Christmas and New Year's Day, after the local strawberry greenhouses are harvested, strawberry prices will fall by about 20 percent. As for the reason for this year's reduced output, in the vendors' view it is the impact of the climate.
Vendor: The yield is very low, the climate is bad, and this year's temperatures are abnormal.
Greenhouse strawberries in Zhejiang Province are few in volume and high in price. In Anhui Province, the national geographical indication Changfeng strawberries are also gradually hitting the market fresh. This year Changfeng County's planting area has reached 210,000 mu, and total output is expected to exceed 350,000 tons. Li Tao, an analyst at the Anhui Zhougudui Agricultural Products Wholesale Market, says that in recent yearsstrawberry plantinghas been expanding year by year, and while the total volume has increased, the sales areas have also increased, so the impact on strawberry prices is not obvious, with prices at more than 25 yuan per jin.
Li Tao: First, a strawberry brand has also been formed. Previously only one place, our Changfeng, grew them; now Changfeng, Feidong and Feixi all have strawberry planting, and the volume increases year by year. Anhui's local strawberries have already become a brand.
Li Tao says that judging from the statistical data, recently strawberry production areas across the country have all begun to come onto the market in small amounts one after another, and at present we are in the early stage of the strawberry season, hence the situation of relatively high prices and relatively small quantities. Affected by the climate, prices in various places are indeed all higher than last year, and at the same time the time of coming onto the market has also been delayed compared with before.
Li Tao: At present strawberry quotes are all above 25, a little higher than last year. Because this year's October climate change was rather unusual, the time when strawberries come onto the market has been somewhat delayed. It is expected that as time goes on, by around New Year next month, a trend of large volumes gradually coming onto the market will begin to appear, and by then prices may fall back to some extent.
What is on the market right now is all greenhouse strawberries, and the picking season is very long, continuing all the way to April or May next year, whereas strawberries grown in the open field generally begin to come onto the market around March. Li Tao says that whether comparing taste or price, greenhouse strawberries surpass open-field strawberries, and compared with now, greenhouse strawberries around the New Year taste better and are lower in price.
Li Tao: Open-field strawberries can't fetch a good price. When large volumes of open-field strawberries come onto the market, the price is just five or six yuan, and you can buy them for three or four yuan. But for greenhouse strawberries, in the early stage prices are relatively high and the taste is relatively poorer. Probably in the later stage, first because the sugar content has accumulated enough, and second because it is also the time when large volumes of greenhouse strawberries come onto the market, the price will also fall back to varying degrees, and mainstream products will all be around 12 or 13.