AMI: almost 5% more apples on EU-market

Dr. Hans-Christoph Behr from the German Agrarmarkt Informations-Gesellschaft (AMI) (Agricultural information services) has emphasized that the indirect consequences of the Russian import embargo are going to, in particular, effect the German market. Most of the export that would normally be going to Russia will, for a short time, end up somewhere within Europe. "This affects individual products by varying degrees," reports Behr. "In relation to the current market volume, 5% more apples must be accommodated within the EU, this number goes down to 2% for onions and cabbages. With the rest of the products smaller quantities are involved. But due to the low price elasticity of fresh fruits and vegetables, even small quantities of extra products on the market can lead to price decreases.

Germany has the largest import market in the EU (5 million tons of fresh fruit, 3 million tons of fresh vegetables), so the focus is on the other EU exporters. Hans-Christoph Behr: "Naturally the pressure will be felt the strongest with the products that are also grown in Germany, for example: stonefruit, cabbage, onions, tomatoes and mushrooms. An increase in the importation of citrus, peaches or grapes will also put the domestic market under pressure, since the different fruits and vegetables can, to a certain extent, substitute each other.