AZE.US
Farmers in Azerbaijan’s Jalilabad district are throwing away part of their strawberry harvest after wholesale prices fell as low as 20 gapiks ($0.12) per kilogram.
Growers told Baku TV that the price of strawberries had dropped from 2.5 manats ($1.47) per kilogram at the start of the season to around 1 manat ($0.59), while some buyers were offering only 20 gapiks.
“At that price, 100 kilograms brings just 20 manats, while one worker must be paid 30 manats,” one farmer said. “When transport and labor costs are included, harvesting no longer makes sense. I collected the strawberries and dumped them.”
Strawberry harvesting is continuing across many villages in Jalilabad, but farmers say the combination of low prices, rainy weather and weak exports has left them with heavy losses.
Prolonged rainfall has damaged the quality of the fruit, with part of the crop spoiling in the fields. Farmers also said exports to Russia were weaker this year, while increased supplies to local markets pushed prices down further.
One grower estimated his losses at around 30,000 manats ($17,650) on one plot and another 20,000 manats ($11,765) elsewhere. He said losses from a three-hectare field had reached approximately 50,000 manats ($29,400).
Agricultural specialists said sharp changes in weather conditions had affected both plant development and crop protection.
They warned that when strawberry prices fall to 50 or 60 gapiks per kilogram, farmers cannot earn enough even to cover workers’ wages because strawberry production requires significant manual labor.
Experts said steps were needed to improve access to foreign markets and create more stable sales conditions for farmers inside Azerbaijan.
AZE.US