Theoretical aspects of the market functioning of vegetable products and its features

Abstract

The article examines the theoretical principles of the market functioning of vegetable products and highlights its features in the conditions of martial law. The important role of the vegetable market in ensuring food security, generating income for small agricultural producers, etc. is argued. In general, the market is considered as a set of interests and actions of real and potential buyers, as well as the conditions under which the exchange is carried out. It is substantiated that the agricultural market has a rather complex structure and represents a set of markets that serve all aspects of agricultural production, is a dynamic system of economic relations. It has been proven that the market of fresh vegetables consists of numerous submarkets characterized by perfect competition. It is highlighted that intra-branch, perfect (pure) and monopolistic competition is characteristic of the specialized vegetable market. The features of the production process of growing, processing, and storing vegetable products are highlighted, which affect the specifics of the functioning of the vegetable market. The biological and economic characteristics of the classification of vegetable crops were systematized and their main groups were identified, on the basis of which the elements of the vegetable market infrastructure were characterized, namely system-forming, providing, functional and controlling. The peculiarities of the vegetable market are summarized, namely: low elasticity of demand; high production costs; wide differentiation of the range of vegetables, local nature of satisfaction of consumer demand; a higher level of average monthly consumption by the rural population; commodity producers are private peasant farms and small agricultural enterprises, reduction of forecast volumes of commodity supply in the conditions of martial law; high dependence of supply on changes in weather conditions; seasonal demand for products; low level of market infrastructure development; high concentration of potential consumers of vegetables in cities; influence of intermediaries on the price level; weak awareness of market subjects. It is substantiated that the economic relations between the subjects of the market of vegetable products are formed on the basis of the interaction of economic subjects in the production, distribution, exchange and consumption of vegetables, which is aimed at achieving high final results and is manifested through specific production, economic and organizational ties between them. The author's definition of the market of vegetable products is a set of agricultural enterprises, canning industry and market infrastructure objects that carry out the main business processes and pursue the full satisfaction of the population's needs for high-quality vegetable products in accordance with rational nutrition standards and consumer demand. Key words: market of vegetable products, demand, supply, market infrastructure, market structure, product traffic.