“We began production of the club varieties with the Modi in 2011, then, we followed that with the Kiku the next year," said Julka Toskic from Delta Agrar. More club varieties are on the way, and testing on the Pink Lady is already in progress. About half of what Delta Agrar handles, which includes fruit sourced from local farmers in addition to the 20,000 tons of their own annual apple production, is exported, and the main destination is Russia. So when choosing new varieties, it's vital to take into account Russian consumer tastes.
“The demand in the Russian market is increasing, and they're asking for quality,” said Toskic. “They want varieties that are new for the market. Domestically, the market is crowded with old varieties, so we bring apples that have very specific flavors.” The Modi, for example, has an intense red color and a unique balance of sour and sweet. The Kiku is also unique with a sweet flavor profile.
“The Modi is a stylish apple that is targeted to people between 25 and 45 years of age who like to try new things,” said Toskic. “The Kiku is targeted to kids and to older people who are health-conscious and live an active life.” The apples have been popular at home and in Russia. Because of the Russian ban on European goods, sales in Russia for all apple varieties have increased, but Toskic doesn't believe they will surge dramatically anytime soon.
“We as a country only have a certain amount of apples in Serbia, so we can't significantly increase our exports quickly,” said Toskic. “We could import European apples to cover our domestic market and export more of our fruit, but we can't increase our exports so much. Acreage under intensive apple production has increased in the last five years, but it will take some time before Serbia can increase its overall apple production.” But in the meantime, Delta Agrar is preparing for the future with equipment upgrades. A new optical sorter that was recently installed has 26 channels that can sort fruit based on several characteristics, like specific size and color percentage.
“It's new technology like this,” noted Toskic, “along with adhering to GlobalG.A.P. principles that will keep people buying from us.” Domestic production will continue through the rest of the year and exports to the Russian market will continue through May.
For more information:
Julka Toskic
Delta Agrar
Tel: +381 11 201 23 33
Fax: +381 11 201 23 37
Email: julka.toskic@deltaagrar.rs
www.deltaagrar.rs