Luxury food: First cherries reach Romanian markets at EUR 30 a kilo

Cherries have started to appear in Bucharest markets and, like every year, the prices they sell for are incredibly high, reaching as much as RON 150 (EUR 30) per kilogram.

Local producers claim that the cherries come from import at prices no higher than RON 6-7 (EUR 1.2-1.5) per kilogram.

The first cherries from Romanian orchards will become available in local markets at the end of May or beginning of June.

“The cherries that sell for RON 150 come from import. The price for a kilogram of cherries is EUR 1-1.5, not more,” Gheorghe Voica, a Romanian farmer from Arges county told local Mediafax. “I don’t think I will be able to sell my cherries for more than RON 5 per kilo,” he added.

Specialists claim that good quality cherries from local production become available at the beginning of June. Not even the poorer-quality ones, known as May cherries, are not yet ready.

Romania has about 1,000 hectares of cherry orchards. Until local fruits become available, local sellers import from Greece, Turkey, and Spain.

It has become almost a tradition in Romania that the first cherries that appear in local markets, at the beginning of May, sell for ridiculously high prices.

(Photo source: ID 153635594 © Tzogia Kappatou | Dreamstime.com)