Standard quality of the shelf product is satisfactory, with recent production batches, almost all from September. The supply is there, although the abundance of choice from the local season is no longer visible, resulting in smaller dedicated spaces.
These are the first indications from the Berries Observatory, which today, September 4, 2024, focused on the urban area of Milan. The prices of blueberries and raspberries are rising, while those of currants and blackberries remain stable.
Lastly, the origins: raspberries come from Poland, Portugal, and Italy; blueberries from Italy, Poland, Peru, and Ukraine; while blackberries are mostly Italian, with some also coming from Spain.
The survey covered 19 points of sale from 18 brands belonging to 15 retail groups. Specifically: Aldi, Bennet, Carrefour express, Carrefour Market, Conad, Coop, Esselunga, Eurospin, Il Gigante, iN's, Iperal, Ipercoop, Lidl, MD, Pam, Penny, Tigros, U2.
Assortment
In the berries category at the points of sale visited, there were between a minimum of two and a maximum of seven references, with an average of 3.9 references per point of sale.
At the 19 points of sale visited, 89% had raspberries in stock; 84% had blueberries; 84% had blackberries; 58% had red currants, and 21% had Tris in stock.
Range
11% of stores had only one reference on sale, 32% had two or three references on sale, and 58% had four or more references on sale.
Quality
Quality refers to the health of the product, measured in terms of: absence of major defects; healthy product but not in ideal condition (not fresh, tired, withered, dull, without bloom); presence of damaged fruits and juice; presence of rotten fruits and mold.
The groups with the best quality were Bennet, Eurospin, Iperal, Lidl, Selex.
Retail Prices
| Retailer | Two-pack | Raspberries | Blueberries | Blackberries | Red currants | Three-pack | Total |
| Carrefour express | 23,04 | 23,04 | |||||
| Carrefour Market | 19,90 | 21,20 | 22,64 | 18,00 | 26,24 | 23,20 | 21,86 |
| Ipercoop | 24,95 | 20,72 | 20,72 | 18,32 | 23,92 | 21,73 | |
| Pam | 23,92 | 23,12 | 18,32 | 19,92 | 21,32 | ||
| Eurospin | 21,52 | 19,92 | 20,72 | ||||
| Coop | 20,72 | 20,72 | 20,72 | ||||
| Il Gigante | 19,04 | 22,24 | 17,44 | 17,60 | 25,20 | 20,30 | |
| Conad | 24,50 | 21,44 | 18,72 | 15,92 | 20,15 | ||
| Esselunga | 21,63 | 20,00 | 17,20 | 15,84 | 19,87 | 18,91 | |
| Tigros | 15,92 | 15,92 | 15,92 | 27,92 | 18,54 | 18,84 | |
| U2 | 19,95 | 21,52 | 21,52 | 11,96 | 18,74 | ||
| Iperal | 19,00 | 21,60 | 19,00 | 17,60 | 15,92 | 18,62 | |
| MD | 20,32 | 19,92 | 14,32 | 18,19 | |||
| Bennet | 17,20 | 17,20 | 17,20 | 17,20 | 17,20 | ||
| Penny | 21,52 | 13,52 | 15,92 | 16,99 | |||
| Lidl | 15,96 | 15,92 | 15,92 | 15,93 | |||
| Aldi | 14,56 | 15,92 | 15,24 | ||||
| iN's | 15,92 | 11,96 | 14,32 | 14,07 |
Raspberries (26 surveys): min. €15.92/kg – max. €23.92/kg – average €20.82/kg
Blueberries (21 surveys): min. €11.96/kg – max. €26.24/kg – average €18.87/kg
Blackberries (20 surveys): min. €11.96/kg – max. €19.92/kg – average €16.37/kg
Red currants (11 surveys): min. €11.96/kg – max. €27.92/kg – average €18.94/kg
Tris (5 surveys): min. €14.48/kg – max. €25.20/kg – average €21.07/kg
Total overall (83 surveys): min. €11.96/kg – max. €27.92/kg – average €19.02/kg.
Brands
Berries from a total of 25 brands were present in the visited points of sale. The brand with the highest average prices in the category was I colori del Sapore. The brand with the lowest average prices for blueberries was Lovita, followed by Val Venosta.
Packaging
71% of the references recorded for blueberries are sold in packages with a net weight of 125 grams.
