State of production and qualities of fruits and vegetables

Abstract

Abstract. Fruits and vegetables play an important role in the human diet. The purpose of the study is to analyze statistical data on the production of agricultural products and the reasons for low consumer satisfaction with the quality of fruits and vegetables and services of the SberMarket online service and develop corrective actions in the system product quality. Research methods are analysis, observation, consumer surveys and quality management approaches to reduce the number of consumer complaints about the quality of products and services. The dynamics of agricultural production in general and crop production, in particular, in Russia from 2013 to 2020 is analyzed, namely, production volumes in actual prices, the gross harvest of potatoes, vegetables, fruits and berries, as well as the share fruit and vegetable products by produced category of farms . In the context of the coronavirus pandemic, there have been major changes in the fruit and vegetable market, in particular, the sale of goods and fruits and vegetables to certain groups of the population was carried out through online trading services. LLC “Instamart-Servis” (SberMarket) provided customer service through a website and a mobile application in one hundred and thirty-four Russian cities in partnership with the METRO Cash & Carry shopping center chain, as well as with thirty unother stores. The satisfaction of consumers with the quality of products and services of the “SberMarket” online service and with trading enterprises of the city of Ekaterinburg in 2020 and 2021 was studied. Results. The dynamics of economic indicators made it possible to identify trends and opportunities for the development of agricultural production in the country; during the coronavirus pandemic, online trading played an important role in providing consumers with high-quality fruit and vegetable products, however, data from a survey of two hundred and thirty consumers of the “SberMarket” online service made it possible to identify insufficient satisfaction with the quality of products and services, determine the causes of inconsistencies and develop recommendations for improving product quality and services of the “SberMarket” online service. Scientific novelty. The possibilities of increasing the volume of fruit and vegetable production under the conditions of Western sanctions are revealed, both through investment in infrastructure and through the expansion of consumer cooperation to consolidate the fruit and vegetable market with private households, also the necessity of using methodological approaches of quality management to identify the causes of quality inconsistencies and the development of corrective actions in order to increase consumer satisfaction with the quality of products and services of the SberMarket online service, in accordance with the requirements of GOST R ISO 9001-2015, is substantiated.