The price of strawberries this season was from the initial seven BAM per kilogram to the final three BAM.
This year, the strawberry harvest was delayed, due to constant rains and slightly colder weather. However, the quality of strawberries in Čelić and Koraj is not questionable. The diligent hosts harvested the best fruits for the end users.
Ševala Mašić and her husband are satisfied with the strawberry harvest they had this year.
“My brother lives in Koraj and grows about 2.5 dunums of strawberries in the field. We make great efforts to achieve the best quality and to satisfy the customer. My job is to distribute strawberries to the end user. The quality and harvest would certainly have been better if the weather was better“, she said for Fena Mašić.
Strawberries are picked in the morning, and in the afternoon, they are on sale both in the markets and in small shops.
From Čelić and Koraj, they were exported all over Europe to distant Russia, but this year they mostly worked for the domestic market. Half of that part of Tuzla Canton lives from growing different berries.
State help was lacking.
“We sold strawberries as best we could. The state did not provide us with a market placement,” said Mašić.
Seasonal workers also come to this municipality, who can earn around 40 BAM a day for picking strawberries.
As the export is not officially agreed, and there is no organized purchase, strawberry producers hope that this year they will managed to cover their costs of the picking season. It is still early for calculations.
