Growing raspberries as a business technology and profitability

Raspberries are among the most popular crops in our country. Unpretentiousness to the soil, easy care and high demand attracts the attention of entrepreneurs to its cultivation. Growing raspberries as a business is beneficial not only from the point of view of the sale of berries, but also from the point of view of additional income from the sale of raspberry seedlings.

Where to start a raspberry business - choosing a site and variety

Raspberry is a plant that loves moisture and sun, and this must be taken into account when choosing a site for growing. The type of soil does not really matter, because raspberries grow even in the forest. But experts believe that the best option is sandy soil, supplemented mulch with a pH level of no more than 5.8-6.2. The size of the plot depends on the planned size of the raspberry business.

The second step is choosing a variety from two types: two-year and renovation... The first begins to bear fruit only in the second year, the second - already in the first, and the crop ripens 2 times - in summer and early autumn.

When calculating the start-up capital, it should be taken into account that seedlings of remontant raspberries are more expensive than two-year-old ones.

Plus two-year-old raspberries - sweet and aromatic berries, but they often freeze in winter.

Repaired varieties are more resistant to low temperatures and pests. The disadvantages of the remontant species include lower taste and the fact that under adverse weather conditions the autumn harvest does not have time to ripen.

The most promising summer varieties for business on raspberries are:

• Lashka;
• Octavia;
• Zyugan.

Lashka - an early variety from Poland. The berries are tasty, firm, cylindrical up to 4 cm long and weighing 5-10 g, tolerate transportation well. Frost-resistant plants (up to 30^aboutC) and high-yielding (up to 20 tons per hectare).

Disadvantages: Kidneys are damaged at very low temperatures and protection against disease is required during the growing season.

Octavia is considered the most promising variety with large red round-conical fruits (weight 6-8 g). The berries are dense, so they stay on the bushes even after prolonged rains. The yield is high (up to 24 tons per hectare). Plants are disease resistant but difficult to reproduce.

Zyugan - a variety brought from Switzerland. The berries have an excellent taste (sweet and sour), they tolerate transportation well, they are stored for up to 7 days at a temperature of -5 - +3^aboutC. The berry weighs 4-12 g, the shoots almost do not need trellis, they tolerate the lack of moisture well, with good care they bear fruit in the first year. The only drawback is sharp thorns.

For business, 3 remontant varieties are also suitable:

• Shelf - ripens in autumn, berries weighing 4-8 g with a good aroma and taste, the yield reaches 10 tons per hectare, reproduces well with the help of roots, no tapestries are required;
• Joan Gee - large (up to 6 g), firm, dark red berries, yield 16-19 tons per hectare;
• Himbo Top - the berry reaches a weight of 10 g, is dark in color, tasty, firm, the plant requires a garter, is resistant to diseases, the seedlings take root well.

Business plan for growing raspberries

The business plan should consist of the following sections:

• the main goals of the enterprise;
• organization of the production process;
• conditions at the time of starting a business (area and other characteristics of the site, the need for hired workers);
• analysis of demand and competitors;
• financial indicators;
• analysis of prospective sales markets;
• sales promotion plan;
• advertising.

Particular attention should be paid to the section "Financial indicators" and the section "Organization of the production process".

"Financial indicators":

• the amount of initial investment;
• the volume of current expenses;
• pricing;
• planned income from the sale of raspberries;
• the profitability of the raspberry business;
• the payback period of the initial investment.

The amount of initial investment depends on the planned scale and the selected raspberry variety - the larger the plot and the more expensive the seedlings, the more investment.

Operating costs depend on the level of wages for employees, the need for the selected variety in feeding and protection from disease. Prices should stimulate demand, therefore, they are set only after careful analysis of the available demand and the prices of competitors.

Income from a raspberry business depends not only on demand and average prices, but also on the quality of marketing activities, weather conditions in a particular season, and sales markets. After all, raspberries can be sold not only to individuals, but also to manufacturing enterprises (for processing) and stores that carry out bulk purchases.

The answer to the question: how much you can earn on raspberries also depends on whether only berries will be sold. Indeed, in order to increase income, you can additionally grow seedlings for sale.

From the statistics, we can conclude that for summer varieties, growing raspberries as a business profitability reaches 35-36%, and the initial investment pays off in 4 years. As for the remontant varieties, when they are grown, the profitability is up to 65%, the initial investment pays off in 3.3 years. Profitability is improved by selling cuttings and cuttings.

Business on raspberries - organization of the production process

Before planting purchased seedlings, you need to carefully examine their roots. They should not have pea-like thickenings that indicate a fairly serious disease - bacterial root cancer. "Peas" at the ends of the roots can be cut, the cuts can be treated with a solution of copper sulfate.

Plant raspberries in early spring or before the first autumn frosts. The distance between the rows is 1.5 m, between the seedlings - 50 cm, the planting depth is 10 cm. After planting, the soil is necessary to water and cover with a layer of mulch, and cut the shoots to ground level. If trellises are required for the selected variety, then every 5 m, stakes 1.5-1.8 m long are driven into the soil and a wire is pulled, to which the plants will be tied next year.

Next year, the raspberry tree looks like this:

The main task during this period is thinning and getting rid of planting from weeds.

If the production is large enough, then it is not advisable to be limited to one variety of raspberries. It is better to purchase several and plant on separate sites to determine which one is best suited to specific conditions.

If you plan to sell seedlings, then they can be grown from roots or cuttings. In the first method, trenches up to 50 cm deep are dug, roots are laid out in them, watered and earthed.

The second method requires cuttings up to 12 cm long. They are cut in autumn, covered with a layer of peat 5-7 cm thick and placed in a cellar or an unheated greenhouse. In spring, cuttings can be planted in garden beds or in small containers.

On a large scale, hired workers will be required for the harvesting period: after all, raspberries are harvested only by hand.

Russians love raspberries, but not everyone has the opportunity to grow them, especially in big cities. Of course, you can buy frozen or processed berries in supermarkets, but not everyone likes them. Therefore, the cultivation of raspberries as a business is quite promising, especially if it is combined with the cultivation of other crops.

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