Ukrainian Blueberry Growers Flags Cost Gap, Automation And New Global Players Causes Of Hindrance Amidst Global Competition.

Zakarpattia, Ukraine; May 2026: Ukraine’s blueberry sector is entering a new stage of integration into the global market at a time when international competition is no longer defined solely by planted area or production volumes. The Ukrainian Blueberry Growers Association (UBGA), which represents Ukraine in the International Blueberry Organisation, continues to build a platform for integrating international expertise, global partnerships and practical market knowledge into Ukraine’s berry sector in order to strengthen its export readiness and strategic position in the global blueberry market.

The UGBA has flagged the key factors shaping the global berry business: the widening cost gap between hemispheres, the emergence of new export regions, automation, varietal strategy, post-harvest efficiency and increasingly strict requirements from international retailers for consistent product quality.

The central topic of concern today is the rapid transformation of the competitive balance between Northern Highbush (NHB) and Southern Highbush (SHB) blueberry production. According to the data presented, global competition is increasingly shifting towards SHB-producing regions in Africa and Latin America, driven by significantly lower labour costs and growing production potential. UGBA noted that average wages in traditional NHB regions namely the United States and Europe, remains substantially higher than in SHB regions, creating serious structural pressure on growers in the northern hemisphere, causing an alarming erosion of cost advantages amongst the northern regions. The difference in production costs now increasingly exceeds the cost of transporting berries between regions, fundamentally changing the competitive logic of the global blueberry market.

The UGBA has further reiterated that considerable attention is also being given to automation and mechanisation. The machine harvesting technologies are developing rapidly, although they are unlikely to transform the industry radically in the very near term. At the same time, the genetic development of SHB varieties adapted to machine harvesting is progressing faster, which could further strengthen the competitive position of southern hemisphere producers in the coming years. Further the Ukrainian body has asserted that automation of packing facilities may become one of the key competitiveness factors for large exporters, although such investments require significant business scale and capital. According to him, fully automated lines can cost more than €2 million, meaning that the economic impact of such solutions depends directly on production volumes.

According to the data presented, in 2008 the United States accounted for around 90% of global blueberry production, whereas today its share has declined to approximately 17%, despite the continued growth of the US industry. Over the same period, the global blueberry market has expanded by roughly nine times. Moreover, countries such as Peru, Mexico, Morocco and China are now rapidly increasing their role in global blueberry supply. China alone, according to UGBA’s data, already accounts for around 25% of global fresh blueberry production.

“For Ukrainian blueberry growers, it is now critically important to see themselves not only as berry producers, but as participants in a global supply chain. The market evaluates not just hectares or yields, but a company’s ability to consistently deliver quality, work properly with varieties, the cold chain, packaging, logistics and retail requirements. Meetings like this help the Ukrainian sector move faster from the stage of growth to the stage of professional international competition”, said Natalia Pukshyn, President of the Ukrainian Blueberry Growers Association.

According to her, direct interaction with practitioners of the global market is extremely important for the Ukrainian blueberry industry at a time when competition is increasingly shifting from simple production growth to technological efficiency, quality consistency and a professional export model.

It is mention worthy that, earlier on the 22nd April 2026, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved amendments to grant programmes for horticulture, berry production, viticulture, greenhouse farming, and the construction of vegetable and fruit storage facilities. According to the Ministry of Economy, Environment and Agriculture of Ukraine, the changes are intended to increase transparency in the use of funds and bring grant programmes closer to EU rules under the Ukraine Facility.

The key change for the fresh produce sector is the reduction of the minimum storage capacity requirement. At the start of the programme, grant support was focused on the construction of new vegetable and fruit storage facilities with a capacity of at least 3,000 tons. Under the updated rules, the minimum threshold has been reduced to 500 tons of simultaneous storage capacity.

This means that the programme could become more accessible not only to large agricultural holdings and infrastructure operators, but also to medium-sized producers of vegetables, fruits and berries, who previously could not apply for support because the minimum capacity requirement was too high.

Under the updated rules, grants will be provided exclusively for the construction of new vegetable and fruit storage facilities on land plots. The maximum amount of support depends on the capacity of the facility: up to UAH 4 million for storage facilities from 500 tons, up to UAH 7 million from 1,500 tons, up to UAH 10 million from 3,000 tons, and up to UAH 20 million from 6,000 tons.

The new rules also include requirements for job creation. Storage facilities with a capacity of:

• 500 tons or more must create at least 06 permanent jobs;
• 1,500 tons must create at least 08 permanent jobs;
• 3,000 tons must create at least 12 permanent jobs;
• 6,000 tons must create at least 16 permanent jobs.

In addition, mandatory examination of the cost-estimate documentation and additional control over the cost of equipment and materials are envisaged. For Ukraine’s fresh produce market, these changes are important not only as another instrument of state support. They address one of the key conditions for improving the sector’s competitiveness: without modern storage, producers remain dependent on seasonal price pressure, rapid sales immediately after harvest, and quality losses.

According to estimates by the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, Ukraine needs around 340,000 tons of additional vegetable storage capacity. Due to the war, the occupation of part of the country’s territory and the destruction of infrastructure, the shortage of vegetable storage capacity increased from 40% in 2021 to 60% in 2025. The ministry has also stated that, because of the lack of storage facilities, 35% of the vegetable harvest does not reach consumers.

“For Ukraine’s fresh produce sector, a storage facility is a tool for managing price, quality, exports and the producer’s negotiating position. If a farmer is forced to sell vegetables or fruit immediately after harvest, they effectively lose part of the value before the product even reaches the market. Modern storage makes it possible not only to reduce losses, but also to sell produce when the market is ready to pay a better price”, advocated Kateryna Zvierieva, Development Director of the Ukrainian Horticultural Association.

According to Zvierieva, lowering the minimum threshold to 500 tons could be an important signal for medium-sized farms, especially in segments such as traditional vegetable crops, apples, pears, frozen berries and other categories where high-quality storage has a direct impact on margins.

“Previously, the threshold of several thousand tons effectively excluded a significant share of producers for whom an individual or cooperative storage facility of 500–1,500 tons is a realistic business solution. These are exactly the types of facilities that could become the basis for local fresh produce clusters, producer cooperation and the development of supplies to retail, processing and export markets. But it is important that the grant does not turn into a formal construction of walls. The market needs not just warehouses, but technological facilities with refrigeration, ventilation, microclimate control, sorting and a clear sales strategy”, Zvierieva had advocated then.

At the same time, the new rules introduced encourages stricter requirements for project discipline. According to LIGA ZAKON, in order to participate in the programme, a facility must meet a number of criteria, including:

• project documentation with a cost estimate,
• a permit or notification of the start of construction works,
• a comprehensive expert review report,
• a microclimate system,
• refrigeration equipment with a controlled atmosphere.

This may complicate access to the programme for some small producers who do not have experience in preparing investment projects. However, it also increases the chances that state support will be directed towards truly technological facilities, rather than basic infrastructure with a limited effect on the market.

“The biggest risk of such programmes is financing facilities that do not change the economics of the producer. If a storage facility is built without a clear understanding of the crop, variety, sales window, energy costs, distribution channels and buyer requirements, it can become not an asset, but an additional financial burden. That is why grants for storage facilities should be viewed not as a construction programme, but as an investment in a new model of fresh produce business”, Zvierieva had then said.

The update of the grant rules also coincides with a broader trend: Ukraine’s fresh produce sector is gradually moving from a purely production-oriented logic to an infrastructure-oriented one. For many crops, the challenge is no longer only how to grow the harvest, but also how to store it, prepare it for sale, standardise it, sell it at the right moment and deliver it to buyers with minimal losses. This is why the development of vegetable and fruit storage facilities could have a direct impact on seasonal price volatility, food security, the quality of produce on the domestic market and Ukraine’s export potential.

“Ukraine does not need fragmented support for individual farms, but a new map of fresh produce infrastructure. Storage facilities should be built where there is production, logistics, access to energy, labour and sales markets. In that case, state grants can create a multiplier effect: reduce losses, stabilise prices for consumers, strengthen farmers’ positions and build a foundation for processing and exports”, Zvierieva had asserted.

Team Maverick.