Last week, the specialists of the Central Laboratory of Russia revealed the poor quality of imported fruit and vegetables of a total weight of 187.2 tons from Turkey, Bulgaria, and from Belgium.
According to the research, 131.6 tonnes of nectarines, peaches, and pears from Spain and France, 55.1 tons of grapes from Turkey and Bulgaria, as well as half a ton of lettuce leaf from Belgium were contaminated with pesticide residues and nitrates.
Source: www.fruit-inform.com
pears
Belgium lowers pear exports to Russia
Belgium exported 41,400 tons of pears to Russia in the season 2012/13, a decrease of 40% from the previous season, when imports had reached 68,000 tons, according to the official statistics.
Such a sharp decrease in exports is connected with lower pear production in Belgium in 2012 due to unfavorable weather conditions during blossoming and ripening.
Belgium’s pear production amounted to 221,000 tons in 2012, a decrease of 21% from the previous year.
Source: www.fruit-inform.com
Russia significantly reduces pear imports
According to Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, Russia imported 364,000 tons of pears in the season 2012/13, a decrease of 15% from the previous season and the lowest result over the past 4 seasons. For comparison, pear imports in the season 2011/12 reached record high 426,000 tons.
The peak of imports was registered in March-April. Argentina was the largest exporter of pears to the Russian Federation with the share of 30%. The Netherlands, Belgium, Poland and China also exported significant volumes.
Source: www.fruit-inform.com
Smallest pear import in four years
Russia imported 260,000 tonnes of pears in total between July 2012 and the end of March 2013. This is the smallest import amount in the last four years. According to the Russian Bureau for Statistics this means that the import amount has gone down by 14% compared to last season. Only in the season 2008/09 was the import amount even lower at 230,000 tonnes. The main pear suppliers for the Russian market were Holland, Belgium and Argentina.
Source: www.freshplaza.com
Russia offers opportunities to suppliers from the fruit and vegetable sector
Russia import more and more fruit and vegetables all the time, while their own production
decreases. In 2012, the country became the most important sales destination for Spanish fruit and vegetables, according to a report from Business Boost International.
Fruit and vegetable imports by Russia in 2012 were compared to the previous year. The tomato and cucumber import decreased slightly, but the import of peppers was 38% higher and the import of potatoes even increased almost threefold. Also, imports of lettuce, aubergine peach and grapes increased. The apple import – in which area Russia worldwide is in third place – decreased by 18 percent.
It appears from the report that in the area of fruit imports, especially Ecuador (bananas), Poland (apples), Turkey (citrus, grapes and top fruit), China (apples, citrus and top fruit), Argentina (apples, pears and citrus), Chile (grapes) that these products are very important for the country. The total consumption of fruit in the country increases for a number of reasons, one of them being the developing retail sector.
Source: www.freshplaza.com
Lithuania supplies fewer pears to the Russian Federation
The exports of Lithuanian pears to Russia continues to decline for the past three seasons. So for the period from July to December last year, Lithuanian suppliers shipped only 18,500 tons of fruit to the Russian market, which is 12% less than last season – 21,000 tons.
However, despite the decline in export performance, Lithuania manages to remain in the second place over two periods in the ranking of countries, supplying pears to Russia.
The top three includes the Netherlands in the first place, followed by Belgium and Poland in the second place.
Source: www.fruitnews.info
Fewer pears supplied to the Russian market from the Netherlands
Over the past six months of the current season, Dutch suppliers exported about 27 tons of pears to Russia, which is 1.6 times less than in the same period last year. Let us recall that from July to December of 2011, about 43 thousand tons of fruit of this species were receives by our country from the Netherlands.
However, despite the decline in imports, the Netherlands were able to keep their leading position among suppliers of pears in Russia.
The reason for decline in exports was the low yield of the fruit this season. According to industry analysts estimate of this European country, farmers managed to collect on average 25% -35% fewer pears, than in the earlier period.
Source: www.fruitnews.info
Bulgaria has reduced the supply of pears to Russia in 2.5 times
Bulgaria continues to lose its position in the Russian market of pears. In the first six months of 2012/13 season, this country exported to the Russian market only 10.8 tons of pears, which is 2.5 times less than in the same period of the previous season.
Besides, this volume was the smallest in the last five seasons. At the moment Bulgaria is only in seventh place in the ranking of pear suppliers at the market of the Russian Federation, while from July to December 2011, it was confidently present in the top three. It is also worth noting that Bulgaria has retained the third largest index of pears import to Russia during the last three seasons. Let us recall that for the July-December 2011 Russia imported 26.9 tons of pears from Bulgaria.
Decline in pear imports and production
According to the industry experts, approximately 120 thousand tons of pears have been exported to Russia in the current season. The Russian Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat), says this shows a decrease of 13% compared to last year.
The main importers of pears into the country remain Poland, the Netherlands and Belgium. It should be recalled that, in 2012, the fruit production was reduced by one third on average in these countries, thus, the decrease in supply to Russia is quite natural.
The production of pears in Russia itself is decreasing. According to the information provided by the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) of the United States, the fruit harvest in the country was only 110 000 tons – 21 percent less than last year.
Source: www.freshplaza.com
European growers of apples and pears are worried by competition with Poland
Almost all European gardeners admit that the biggest competition threat for them comes from Poland, which has an important advantage: low prices for apples and pears. Besides, the harvest of this year exceeds all the previous indices, as well as production volumes in other countries.
The Polish growers do not forget about the quality either, improving it annually. However, the European manufacturers do not despair, as serious competition is a normal state of a healthy market. For example, apples and pears from Holland are very popular in the inner market of the country, as well as in Belgium and in Germany. But the Eastern market is often closed for them because they find it difficult to implement the expensive production among the people with lower income then Europeans’.
Source: www.fruitnews.ru