Serbia is one of the largest producers of raspberries in the world, and raspberries from the region have even reached New Zealand. However, a reader of the newspaper Danas from Hamilton, New Zealand, was surprised when he found raspberries from his homeland in a local supermarket and compared their prices with those in Serbia.
The reader, Bojan Mihaljica, said that he recently bought a package of raspberries at a local supermarket (Pack N Save) and was pleasantly surprised to see that they came from Serbia. The price was reasonable, but when he compared it with prices back home, he was shocked. The frozen Serbian raspberries were cheaper in New Zealand than in some supermarkets in Serbia.
According to photos sent by the reader, a 750-gram package of frozen raspberries costs 14.39 New Zealand dollars, which equals 19.19 dollars per kilogram or approximately 1,131 dinars.
Danas compared these prices with offers in Serbian supermarkets using the website “Cenoteka,” which collects prices from retail chains. Most packages of frozen raspberries in Serbia were more expensive than those in New Zealand.
For example, a 300-gram package of frozen raspberries from Frikom costs around 528 dinars in Serbian supermarkets, making the price per kilogram approximately 1,742 dinars. This is 54 percent more expensive than the same product from Serbia sold in New Zealand, which is nearly 18,000 kilometers away. Similar prices apply to 300-gram packages from the company Polar Fud.
Private labels from retail chains, however, are much cheaper. Polar Fud produces frozen raspberries for the IDEA store under their brand “Garden Good,” and a 400-gram package costs 278 dinars, or about 695 dinars per kilogram.
A 300-gram package of frozen raspberries from Delez’s private label “Nature’s Promise” costs 232 dinars, or roughly 769 dinars per kilogram, which is 47 percent cheaper than the raspberries the Danas reader bought in New Zealand.
Another private label sold by Maxi is even cheaper. Under the brand Gustona, a 400-gram package costs 270 dinars, or 676 dinars per kilogram.
Economist and former assistant minister of trade Dragovan Milićević explains that private labels are cheaper because they do not have additional costs.
He notes that private labels do not carry marketing costs or other expenses that producers incur before the product reaches store shelves. Well-known brands have built a perception of quality among consumers, which allows them to set higher prices. Customers essentially pay extra for brand loyalty.
