site.btaState Commission on Commodity Exchanges and Markets Chair Comments on Food Prices in Q1 of 2024

Vladimir Ivanov, Chair of the State Commission on Commodity Exchanges and Markets (SCCEM), said in a BTA interview on Friday that since the beginning of the year, the food market has been stable and nothing suggests destabilization. Ivanov commented on the situation for the first quarter of 2024, which the commission is monitoring.

The SCCEM prepares weekly, monthly and annual bulletins on the wholesale prices of food, fruits and vegetables traded at the registered commodity markets and producers' markets in the country. The market price index, which reflects the movement of wholesale food prices, has gone down for the fourth week in a row, after a slight upward movement until the last week of February.

Ivanov pointed out that, in general, there are variations only in the prices of fruits and vegetables, the main food products are almost at the same values since the beginning of the year and lower than those observed last year.

This is not a deflationary process, it is just some kind of cycle, some kind of variation, it is normal and it is due to the increasing supply of fruits and vegetables and the normalization of their prices, he explained.

Ivanov also said that he does not see any prerequisites for a change in the market until July.

The SCCEM Chair pointed out that there is mass production of vegetables in destinations close to Bulgaria and a larger supply is expected, which will lead to a drop in prices.

This is not good news for Bulgarian manufacturers, Ivanov noted, explaining that there are not many opportunities for Bulgarian greenhouse producers to become more efficient, but that there is another trend - regardless of the fact that the Bulgarian products are more expensive, they are preferred by consumers in terms of quality. Ivanov added that a big problem are insufficient quantities.

The SCCEM Chair does not expect shocks in the market around Easter, as in recent years there have not been major price variations around major holidays. There can and will be individual places artificially inflating the price of lamb, but last year showed that those who did failed to sell it, he noted, adding that the market is really very competitive and it is very difficult to allow this type of negative impact. 

What the State should do is to ensure that the rules are followed as they are, that they are the same for everyone, that competitive advantages are not gained as a result of someone not following the laws, stressed Vladimir Ivanov.