Watermelons have become cheaper in Poland – Hungarian imports are also pushing up prices

At the beginning of August, the supply on Polish wholesale markets suddenly increased in line with seasonal trends. This was immediately felt in the prices, as this year’s European harvest is more abundant than in the past three scarce years. In July, melons became even more expensive due to unfavorable weather: heavy rains and cloudy, cool weeks restrained the supply. However, by August, southern European and Balkan items, as well as domestic Polish melons, appeared.

The most expensive are Polish watermelons: in mid-August, their price is around PLN 2.00/kg (approx. HUF 185/kg) on average. Hungarian and Serbian imports, on the other hand, are much cheaper, ranging from PLN 1.40 to PLN 1.60/kg (HUF 130 to HUF 150/kg). Overall, the average price on wholesale markets was around PLN 1.70/kg (HUF 160/kg), which is 21 percent lower than last year and 26 percent higher than the price level of the particularly weak 2023 season.

According to the seasonal pattern, supply usually narrows in the second half of August, when prices start to rise. However, the extent and timing of this largely depend on the weather and demand, so it is still uncertain how much watermelon will become more expensive on Polish wholesale markets in the coming weeks.