The forecast applies most of all to table grapes of late varieties. According to Andrei Botezatu, an expert in viticulture, prolonged rainfall in October dramatically increases the risk of berry cracking even in high-intensity vineyards formed according to the “pergola” and “gable” types. Only the plantations protected by a rainproof film have a greater margin of stability, but there are only a few of them in Moldova. However, even in this case, the risk is not even direct contact with raindrops, but high atmospheric humidity, established for a long period of time. In such a situation, winegrowers will have to wait for the produce to dry on the bushes before storing it. This also makes sense from the point of view that by now the accumulation of sugar by the grapes has been slow. In general, by the end of the first decade of October, the sugar content, in particular of “Moldova” grapes, is below 20% in the majority of commercial lots.
In this regard, the country is unlikely to export 80-100 thousand tons of grapes, as predicted by the MAIA Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry in early autumn.
Precipitation also significantly complicates the process of harvesting and preparation for storage of plum crop. In this regard, processors do not exclude that in the last third of the harvesting campaign the supply of low quality plums “from the garden” will increase, but the purchase prices for this product will decrease.
