The National Supply Company (Conab) recorded a record supply of potatoes at the Supply Centers (Ceasas) in December. According to the 1st Bulletin of the Brazilian Horticultural Market Modernization Program (Prohort), released today (20) by the company, the scenario led to a drop in prices in almost all the wholesale markets analyzed.
The exception was only Rio Branco (AC), where there was a monthly increase of 8.11%. In the others, the reductions reached 36.86% in Curitiba (PR), 30% in Rio de Janeiro, 27.3% in São Paulo, 22.92% in Belo Horizonte and 15.23% in Campinas (SP), details the bulletin. As a result, the potato was sold, on average, at R$ 0.77 a kilo in Rio de Janeiro and at R$ 1.48 in Belo Horizonte, states where the vegetable was cheaper. Also according to the survey, other markets also showed lower prices. This is the case of Brasília (4.21%), Recife (4%) and Fortaleza (3.77%).
The Prohort Bulletin surveys statistical data from Conab, based on nine of the country’s main supply centers. Among the vegetables and fruits analyzed are lettuce, potato, onion, carrot, tomato, banana, orange, apple, papaya and watermelon.
Onion continues to register high prices in all Ceasas evaluated. These increases exceeded the 30% margin in at least three wholesale markets: Recife (37.44%), Rio de Janeiro (32.29%) and Brasília (30.08%). The increase in the product was 24.69% at Ceasa in Rio Branco; 23.50% in Curitiba; 20.79% in São Paulo; 20.10% in Campinas; 20% in Fortaleza; and 19.68% in Belo Horizonte.
Market recovery and inflation
According to the director of Agricultural Policy and Information at Conab, Sergio De Zen, the results show that a realignment of prices is underway, since the country exported, last year, a greater volume than that recorded in other years. In the director’s assessment, this indicates “recovery of existing markets and opening of new ones”.
“Another positive point of the hortifruti sector is that we are not noticing very strong inflationary pressure, because we have high products, such as onions, being compensated by low prices, such as potatoes. There is a balance between prices. inflation rates, we ended up having a balance between prices”, he said.
fruits
A similar situation was observed in fruits. “Oranges and watermelon are down, while bananas and papaya are up. This is typical of seasonal factors”, informed De Zen, referring to the compensation of these products to balance inflation rates. The bulletin recorded a drop in watermelon prices, thanks to the greater offer of the product in the last month of December.
According to Conab, the increase in banana prices was caused by “lower production of the silver variety, weather problems and exports, which continued to grow”. In the case of papaya, in addition to the drop in supply, mainly of the formosa variety, there was “an increase in the value of inputs for production, fungal diseases due to the rains and exports, which increased again”. Demand remains regular for other typical year-end fruits, such as plums and peach. “The volume was well absorbed in retail,” says the survey.
According to Conab’s Horticultural Market Studies manager, Joyce Fraga, oranges were the only fruit that had a reduction in foreign trade, compared to 2020. “The reduction was 49% compared to the previous year. In financial terms, the reduction was 78%.
Lettuce
The director of Agricultural Policy informed that there were cases of products that presented “erratic behavior”, due to “factors such as the intensity of rain or hail in each region of the country”.
These products have “completely different supply behavior, which causes prices to fluctuate unevenly across the country.” This is the case with lettuce which, according to Joyce, even in the face of fluctuation, registered an 8% increase in supply.
