Polish apple growers hope that, if the Russian borders open up again, their market share will be equal to their position before the boycott. According to the Greek exporters' association, Armenia, Turkey and Iran are not capable of replacing the loss of Greek stonefruit on the Russian market. Siberian soft fruit growers are pleased with the disappearance of their biggest competitor: Polish soft fruit. Since the end of the Soviet Union, the volume of soft fruit has decreased significantly. According to the growers, they can increase production if the boycott continues for a few years. In Russian supermarkets, the share of domestic produce is still not big enough, the Russian retail organization says. Potato cultivation in Russia could face delays. The Russian Potato Union thinks the number of customs checkpoints is insufficient, especially if, in addition to the Netherlands, Germany and Finland, England, Scotland and Poland are also allowed to export seedlings. Competition authority research shows that price hikes in Russian supermarkets aren't caused by price fixing, but by the economic circumstances.
Polish apple sector hoping for recovery export
At a press conference, Miroslaw Maliszewski, head of the Polish Fruit Growers Association, said he hoped export volumes to Russia would return to the level of before the boycott. He also said that the campaign 'An apple a day' has yielded positive results. The campaign was deployed in several European countries. In these countries, demand for Polish apples increased, according to Miroslaw.
Poles eating more apples
Ten years ago, Poles consumed an average of 23 kilos of apples a year. In 2013, this went down to 14 kilos, but sector estimates say consumption increased by 20% in 2014. The apple consumption particularly increased in the first months following the boycott. Growth figures of 30-40% were noted for one retailer, and the growth is expected to continue.
"Armenia and Turkey cannot replace Greece"
According to the head of the Greek exporters' association, Georgios Frangistas, Armenia and Turkey aren't capable of replacing the Greek export lost to the boycott. "Greece accounted for 23% of the Russian peach import. It is unlikely that such a volume can be replaced by Turkey, Armenia and Iran," Georgios told Armenian news site news.am, "additional suppliers will be needed." According to him, the Greek peach season, which starts late October, would hardly suffer from the boycott. The stonefruit can be stored for extended periods of time. Georgios is more worried about the strawberry season which starts at the end of February.
Siberian berry growers profit from boycott
Siberian cooperation Sady Baraby sees opportunities on the Russian market thanks to the boycott. Where the company used to compete with Polish soft fruit exporters, that competition has disappeared after Russia closed its borders to European produce. The Siberian soft fruit generally doesn't have a good competitive position on the Russian market. "In the Soviet era, we harvested 40 tonnes a year. Now this volume is 12 tonnes. It's possible to get back to the old volume again, provided the boycott lasts another three to four years," the Siberian cooperative reports.
Possible problems with seedling import Russia
The executive director of the Russian Potato Union, Alexey Krasilnikov, recently expressed his concerns about the situation on the seedling market. After a boycott that came into force in 2013, last year the border was partially opened again for European seedlings. The seedlings need to meet strict phytosanitary demands, and can only be imported through three temporary storage locations (which can be found in the regions of Smolensk, Bryansk and Shushary Leningradsky). "Three locations is not enough," Krasilnikov told fruitnews.ru. "At the moment, Germany, the Netherlands and Finland are allowed to export seedlings. In the future, England, Scotland and Poland will likely be added to that list. Whether these temporary storage locations will have sufficient capacity or whether it will delay cultivation, remains to be seen."
Ilya Yakubson: Not enough Russian produce in supermarkets
The share of Russian products in the retail range is not as big as desired, according to Ilya Yakubson, head of the Russian organization of retailers and CEO of supermarket chain Dixy. For large store formulas, 10% of the product range comes from Russian soil. At convenience stores, the share is 2% at most, Yakubson said. According to the retail organization, few new deals have been made. Most of the deals had already been made before the boycott.
Law proposed to limit import
Members of the Russian parliament, the Duma, have proposed a law forbidding retailers to directly buy imported products. According to the proposers, it's undesirable that retailers prefer imported products over Russian products. For Russian retail, it's often not profitable to work together with domestic producers, even if they offer better conditions and prices. The bill's initiators say they don't want to damage retail's networks, but to increase the amount of Russian produce on store shelves.
Russian ministry presents harvest estimates
The Russian Ministry of Economic Affairs predicts an increase in potato and vegetable harvest this year. The ministry estimates the increase to be 0.4 and 0.8 percent respectively. For potatoes, that means a volume of 31.2 million tonnes.
No cartels Russian retail
Research by the Russian competition authority shows there are no cartels behind the increasing food prices in Russia. According to the study, the growing prices are attributable to the boycott. The devaluation of the rouble compared to the dollar also caused prices to go up.
Seed shortage in Crimea
The ministry of Agriculture in Crimea admitted there is a shortage of seed and planting material. A particular bottleneck is logistics, where there are issues with shipment, and higher prices are being asked. The credit system on the peninsula also doesn't function optimally yet. The minister pledged millions in compensation for the purchase of high-quality seed.