TABLE BEET. OPPORTUNITIES AND PROSPECTS OF PRODUCTION

Purpose. To overview the table beet market in Ukraine, to articulate the main problems, to evaluate production opportunities, and to outline measures to raise efficiency in the future. Methods. To achieve this purpose, the following methods were used: mathematical and statistical processing, grouping, analysis of time series, abstract-logical and dialectical methods of cognition. Results. The current table beet production in Ukraine is discussed. The shares of this crop in the total planting acreage and gross production of vegetables have determined; data on the distribution of beet production in different natural and climatic zones of Ukraine and individual categories of farms are presented. The causes that hinder effective development of this segment of the vegetable market are listed; they include outdated technologies and lack of innovations; insufficient numbers of required capacities for finishing, packaging, storage, and processing; lack of professional branding and effective infrastructure; underdeveloped agro-logistics; and non-compliance of domestic vegetable products with European standards. The general strategy and future mainstreams of scientific support for table beet production under integration have been outlined. Conclusions. As the material well-being of the population grows, the food basket structure changes towards increased consumption of vegetables, including table beet. One should be driven by this reference point, along with the expediency of the maximum use of the available natural and economic potentials for table beet production when justifying the vegetable growing development in Ukraine for the future. Further development of the table beet production in Ukraine should be guided towards science-supported high-intensity production based on introduction of new high-yielding cultivars and hybrids with excellent palatability. At the same time, in the future, technical re-equipment of the vegetable cultivation, development of information support systems, creation of marketing services, and development of market infrastructure are necessary.