How did the introduced state of emergency and quarantine regimes affect the operation of greenhouse complexes? According to greenhouse managers, demand for their products has sharply declined. Some companies in this area are planning to close down altogether. In a conversation with a reporter “Капитал.kz” farmers told how to solve the problems of the industry.
Indira Belgitayeva, chief agronomist of BRB APK greenhouse, TM “Nac-Agro”
Our greenhouse is located in Almaty, we grow tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, cucumbers. We produce more than 7 thousand tons of vegetables annually.
Because of the epidemic, the main problem we are facing is a sharp drop in demand for our products. Demand sank by more than 70%. This is due to the fact that cafes and restaurants, although they deliver their meals to your home, have significantly reduced the volume of purchases of vegetables. We used to provide products to some hotels in Almaty, but they are now closed. Only the targeted delivery of our products has increased. But the volume of products sold through this channel is negligible compared to the pool of orders that we had earlier.
In addition, the demand for our products has fallen due to the fact that some Kazakhstanis are at home, in quarantine, some have lost their earnings altogether, and they do not have enough funds to purchase tomatoes and cucumbers. After all, these are not essential products. Now flour, cereals, sugar, and potatoes are in high demand.
According to our estimates, only for eggplants per week we do not receive 11 million tenge. According to our information, in the South of Kazakhstan, about 70% of greenhouses are going to stop their activities altogether. This is also due to a sharp drop in demand for their products and a shortage of personnel. We are talking mainly about those who were engaged in growing tomatoes and cucumbers.
Plus, we have difficulties with staff – many employees live in the suburbs of Almaty, and after the borders are closed, they can’t go to work. We sent 50% of our vegetable growers on vacation. As a result, we do not have time to carry out maintenance work on time, and vegetables can not wait, they need daily care. Some specialists have to work until night to somehow compensate for the lack of staff.
Retail chains can increase their prices for vegetables up to 30% of the wholesale price. During the pandemic, this margin for tomatoes and cucumbers has not changed much. But the problem with prices remains relevant.
In order to support greenhouses, we ask the state to subsidize the operation of greenhouse complexes and return the differentiated electricity tariff. Until 2017, the night electricity rate was twice as low as the day rate. During peak hours, during the day, the greenhouses did not use electricity. Due to this, we managed to save huge amounts, because electricity costs account for more than 50% of our expenses in winter, during which the cost of vegetables reached 1500 tenge per kg. Sometimes it was close to the price of meat. This high cost is directly related to the lack of a differentiated tariff for light. Since greenhouse complexes use additional lighting in winter, the cost of vegetables increases by 50%. If the government listens to us, the prices of greenhouse vegetables may decrease by an average of 40%.
We have already sent a letter to the Ministry of agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan with a request to transfer greenhouses to a differentiated electricity tariff. But there is no answer yet.
Alibek Kogabaev, founder of the greenhouse “Kogabaev N. With.»
Our greenhouse is located in the Karaganda region. We are currently growing green onions. We produce about 100 kg per day. The coronavirus pandemic has brought the demand for our products to zero since mid-March. The greenhouse has been operating at a loss for more than 20 days. It is difficult for us to pay the workers ‘ salaries, our onions are rotting. At the same time, we can’t lay off employees, because the onion seed supply season will start in may. We also plan to plant tomatoes and cucumbers, and this requires employees.
Previously, we sold our products to supermarkets, markets, and restaurants in Nur-Sultan, Kokshetau, and Karaganda.during the quarantine period, we are ready to supply onions along the green corridor. But the problem is that there is almost no demand. I assume that this is due to increased competition among greenhouses or a drop in onion consumption. Before the borders were closed, on average, we sold about 10-20 kg of onions to each store. Now every day our greenhouse loses 27 thousand tenge, this amount includes staff salaries, electricity and water costs. The lost daily income is 60 thousand tenge.
Another problem is that due to the quarantine in Almaty, the capital, Taraz, and Shymkent, farmers cannot travel outside their region to buy planting material. For example, we buy seeds in Kokshetau. We managed to cover certain risks by purchasing seeds in February-March. But many greenhouse owners are still unable to purchase products for treating plants and soil from pests due to quarantine.
Now there is an opinion in society that some vegetable producers are speculating on the coronavirus pandemic and inflating their prices. This is not true. In our experience, I can say that only wholesalers charge at least 20-50% of the price for vegetables.
When quarantine was introduced, many farmers left the capital to join their families in the South. They had to close their greenhouses and “throw” a huge amount of vegetables on the market at a low price. The volume of cucumbers and tomatoes sold amounted to tens of tons. As a result, prices for some vegetables in the capital have significantly decreased. Some greenhouses have become unprofitable to work at all.
The state can support greenhouses through subsidies during a difficult period. We spend a lot of money on coal, which is used to heat the greenhouse complex. Also, a significant part of the budget is spent on electricity.
In the Ministry of agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan in response to the request “Капитал.kz” they reported that the state subsidizes certain expenses of greenhouses.
“The state reimburses part of the costs for the construction and expansion of the greenhouse complex and for the creation and expansion of drip irrigation systems. State support is also provided for the development of production of indoor vegetable crops by subsidizing the cost of fertilizers (with the exception of organic ones), herbicides, bioagents (entomophages) and biologics. Lending to the construction of greenhouses is one of the priority areas of financing of the holding “KazAgro”, – noted in the Department.
The Ministry of agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan sent letters to the akims of regions, cities of national significance, and the capital with a request to provide farmers with an unhindered pass through checkpoints for spring field work.
“We also asked them to pay special attention and take control of the issues of timely provision of spring field work with equipment, fertilizers, plant protection products, spare parts and petroleum products. The issue of a differentiated electricity tariff is being worked out by the Ministry of energy of the Republic of Kazakhstan,” the Ministry said.
Article published on April 22, 2020,
Source: https://kapital.kz/economic/86144/v-kakoy-podderzhke-nuzhdayut-sya-teplitsy.html
