MART: Half of fruit and veg supplies in Belarusian stores come from farmers

Almost half of fruit and vegetables on offer in Belarusian stores are farm products, Natalya Melnikova, Head of the Trade and Public Catering Department of the Ministry of Antimonopoly Regulation and Trade (MART) told BelTA.

There are almost 4,000 farms in Belarus. “30 of them are involved in storing fruit and vegetable products in stabilization funds. A total of 133 organizations will be storing fruit and vegetable products this year,” Nataya Melnikova said.

In her words, farmers take an active part in the country's production and storage of food products. “Almost 50% of fruit and vegetable supplies in Belarusian stores come from farmers, and prices for such products are often lower. They make and store their products themselves, and it is cheaper for them to do so than, for example, for a wholesale organization,” the head of the department said.