Lukashenko demands reducing vegetable prices in off-season
MINSK, 21 December (BelTA) – The government should take measures to lower prices for vegetables in the off-season, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said at a government meeting to discuss price regulation mechanisms on 21 December, BelTA has learned.
Speaking about pricing and inflation, Aleksandr Lukashenko could not ignore the rise in prices for domestic vegetables, in particular for cucumbers and tomatoes. Back in the spring, the head of state gave an instruction to come to grips with issues related to production of fruits and vegetables in the off-season. In particular, the president suggested building more greenhouses so that Belarusians could be able to buy domestic vegetables all the year round. Yet, the government decided to try to fulfill this task with the least investment. According to Deputy Prime Minister Leonid Zayats, the return has been good: there are sufficient domestic products on the store shelves. Cucumber prices dropped by about 16.5% compared with December 2022.
However, Aleksandr Lukashenko drew attention to the seasonal increase in prices for vegetables. He noted that people are concerned about today’s prices, not last year’s. As statistics show, the measures taken were not enough. “You should produce these cucumbers in sufficient quantities. People want them to be cheaper in the run up to New Year,” the president demanded. “I told you to build 10 more greenhouses. You said that you would install more lighting in greenhouses. So go ahead!”
As Chair of the National Statistical Committee Inna Medvedeva reported, in December prices for cucumbers surged by almost 66% month-on-month. The situation is similar for cabbage, onions, beets, carrots and tomatoes.
“We’ll provide enough light and cucumbers will grow just like that!” Aleksandr Lukashenko said sarcastically commenting on the government’s promises. “Think what steps you should take. Why am I asking this question? I would not have said it some 10-15 years ago as gas and oil were expensive back then. But now there’s enough of everything.”
“Of course, there is room for improvement, and we are aware of this problem,” First Deputy Prime Minister Nikolai Snopkov responded.
“We need to take it up a notch. At least where we can,” the head of state demanded. “Keep in mind, this is our first step to sort out prices. Everything will depend on production, on volumes. We need to ramp up output, especially where we can.”
