Vegetable prices have fallen, but are still higher than last year

The collapse of vegetable prices in July was recorded, but prices are still higher than the level of December last year. According to the Institute of Agrarian Economics, in July consumer prices for, in particular, white cabbage decreased by 48.9% compared to June, and onion prices decreased by 34.2%. At the same time, the price of carrots decreased by 30.4%. These are the most significant decreases among 33 food items, the monthly price dynamics of which are monitored by the State Statistics Service. However, the cost of these products significantly exceeded the levels of December 2022, in particular, onions - by 17.9%, cabbage - by 1.8 times, onions - 2.1 times.

As noted by the director of the Institute, academician of the National Academy of Sciences Yuriy Lupenko, due to the traditional trend of falling prices for vegetables in the second half of summer - in the beginning of autumn, we can expect a further decrease in consumer prices for vegetables. For example, last year the prices of cabbage fell from July 2022 to January 2023, and for carrots - from August to December. However, now, according to him, there are signs of stopping this downward trend in prices. For example, after a long decline in beet prices from August 2022 to May 2023, their growth only resumed in June 2023 (+7.7%), and in July they increased by a record 3.1 times. Also, after a long decline, which lasted from August 2022 to May 2023, a record - 1.7 times - increase in potato prices was recorded. According to the expert, all these factors suggest the possibility of price increases for other types of vegetables.

According to the forecast estimates of the scientists of the Institute of Agrarian Economics, given that under the influence of the rise in energy prices, the fall in consumer prices for processed food and livestock products slowed down, a significant decrease in food prices will most likely not occur in August.