Moscow, May 6 (EFE) .- The price of the potato reached historical maximums in Russia, arriving in April at 85.4 rubles ($ 1.05) per kilogram for the final consumer, almost the triple that last year, the Kommersant newspaper reported Tuesday.
In turn, the wholesale price has been revalued throughout this year 85 %, reaching figures that quadruple the spring of 2024 and that reach historical maximums.
Retailers sell the tuber with a margin of benefits of only 2 rubles ($ 0.02) on average for each kilogram., According to the president of the Association of Russian Russian Companies, Stanislav Bogdánov.
food prices are upwards due to supply reduction; the lack of facilities for storage; The energy cost, as well as the increase in demand, explains Dmitri Vostrikov, executive director of Rusprodsoyuz, Association of Agricultural Producers and Exporters.
However, other sources indicate the shortage of production and worse harvests due to bad weather as the main cause.
As seen in the statistics of the official ROSSTAT agency, the crop of potatoes in Russia amounted to approximately 17,800,000 tons, 11.9 % less than the previous year, a situation opposed to that of 2023, when a record harvest was achieved that resulted in a price decrease.
-This caused that two years ago the sales prices of the producers did not always cover their costs, so they decided to reduce their planting areas, which in 2024 was reduced by 10.8 %, while it is estimated that in 2025 it increased by 2.3 %.
Another problem that adds to the next season is the late harvest this year, which is expected to be delayed due to recent frosts in May, a fact that also infuses uncertainty in the agricultural market.
At this time, local products are exhausted and retail potatoes come, mainly, from Egypt, Pakistan and China, when in normal conditions at this time of the year these imported products occupy between 30 % and 40 % of the shelves of the supermarkets.
It is also expected that before the price climb the consumer reorient its demand to other products, such as the Sarracene wheat, which is very popular in Russia and whose cost this year decreased by 6.6 %, to the 78.4 rubles (0.97 dollars) per kilo.
Potato is a key and traditional element of Russian gastronomy and culture, and has always been characterized by being an accessible food throughout the country. EFE
