An explanation has been found for the record rise in price of oranges: will they become a delicacy?

“Oranges, of course, have risen in price a lot,” sighs a customer in a supermarket, “200 rubles per kilogram is the minimum.”

“Before,” she continues, “they were cheaper than apples; for 40 rubles you could buy quite decent ones from Morocco.” And now it’s more than two hundred, I haven’t seen it cheaper anywhere.

The woman admits that in their family, oranges are usually used (that is, they used to be used before the price went up) for making freshly squeezed juice. But now you can forget about such a wonderful and healthy drink.

Fortunately, the orange example did not spread to other fruits. In August, pears rose in price by 1.5%, apples by 1.3%. Also unpleasant, but still not so harsh.

Let us recall that Russians experienced similar price stress in December 2020, when prices for sunflower oil and sugar rose on retail shelves. Oil then increased in price by 23.82%, but sugar, our sweet product, increased by 71.5%. However, the authorities sorted out that situation within a week; Vladimir Putin personally instructed the government to limit prices for these goods. Which was done more or less successfully.

But with oranges the situation is completely different. You can’t hit the table with your fist, you can’t send FAS officers on raids on retail counters. As you know, aspen trees do not bear oranges; we buy them by import – about 450 thousand tons per year. Back in 2021, our main suppliers of citrus fruits were Brazil, Egypt, South Africa and Turkey. Today, foreign trade statistics remain closed to Russians. But there is no need to look long for the reasons for the rise in import prices. This is the weakness of the ruble, which has recently fallen in price by about 30% against the dollar, difficulties with logistics and long delivery times.

As the executive director of the Rusprodsoyuz association, Dmitry Vostrikov, told us, average retail prices for oranges as of September 8 were 217 rubles per kilogram, a year ago they were 121. “The rapid growth is explained by the fact that federal retail chains have foreign exchange contracts with countries exporting citrus fruits and they immediately broadcast changes in purchase prices to the shelf,” the expert explained. “For independent importers, wholesale prices also increased, but by 7.8% compared to last year. The delta between wholesale prices and retail prices is the markup of retailers.”

Meanwhile, orange juice, which many of us got used to when juicers became available for free sale, is one of the most popular in Russia and is second only to apple juice. We call the Soyuznapitki association to find out what prices await us in the near future.

“We have had problems with raw materials for several years now,” Association President Maxim Novikov told us. – Today the situation is getting worse; there is a risk of not only rising prices for imported raw materials, but also interruptions in the supply of concentrated juice. Therefore, the market of Brazil, the world’s main supplier of oranges, is very important for us.

– What needs to be done so that Russians are not left without this drink?

– Our industry advocates maintaining a zero duty rate on concentrated orange juice. And reducing the duty on orange checks to zero. Simply put, these are orange fibers used in the production of many drinks and foods. This will allow us to minimize risks and provide Russians with juice products.

The association refrains from making forecasts regarding the rise in price of orange juice. But it is clear that due to a bad harvest in Brazil, imports of raw materials will increase in price and this will be included in the cost of finished products.

But what is especially depressing for lovers of orange juice and citrus fruits is the statistical data of long-term observations of rising prices. And they state that the biggest surge in oranges occurs in the period August–October. It is possible that new price records and anomalies are yet to come.

…Well, for Russians the main thing is that they have potatoes and beets. But we’ll somehow manage without oranges, because in Soviet times they only appeared under the Christmas tree on New Year’s.