Oleg Pugaev, Agricultural Counsellor at the Embassy of the Russian Federation to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, talked to FreshPlaza and offered some updates regarding the situation on importing Turkish tomatoes, as well as future developments.What is the current situation with regards to the import of Turkish tomatoes into Russia?
According to the Resolution of the Government №672 dated 2 June 2017, tomatoes originating from the Republic of Turkey are subject to an import ban.
There were different reports stating that there is a certain period of time during which Turkey is allowed to export tomatoes to Russia. What can you say about this?
I heard only the single official comment in this regard. Our Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich said that we would continue our consultations on finding possibilities for exporters of Turkish tomatoes. He mentioned that a time slot between November and April could be considered as a period for the deliveries of limited batches of tomatoes from Turkey (2 June, Saint-Petersburg).
Russian premier Dmitry Medvedev and Turkish premier Binali Yildirim
Source: Russian Government
How about other fruits and vegetables? Now that majority of the products are allowed for import, how does this affect the market? How about the consumers? What have you noticed, now that Turkish produce is once more available on the Russian market?
Other fruits and vegetables are allowed for import. There are no official statistics yet. In my opinion, our consumers haven’t felt any big differences so far. It’s the “high season” in terms of fruit & vegetable production (supply) now.
Any other development in Turkish-Russian bilateral trade? What is next for both countries?
At the moment, market access for Russian meat and poultry products to Turkey and for fruits and vegetables in the opposite direction is the key topic in the framework of bilateral cooperation in the field of agriculture.
The sanctions for trade with Russia are said to boost the development of domestic business. It is also said that it makes exports more competitive. What can you say about this?
According to the official statistics (as of June 27, 2017) the total production of vegetables has reached 433,500 tons; this is an increase of 36.3% when compared to last year.
In particular, 325.3 thousand tons of cucumbers (+33.3%) and 101.3 thousand tons of tomatoes (+58%) were harvested. The production of other vegetable crops is 6,9 thousand tons.
The leaders among the Russian regions are Krasnodar - 59.3 thousand tons, Stavropol - 27.4 k tons, the Republic of Bashkortostan - 25.1 k tons, Tatarstan - 24.3 k tons and Karachay-Cherkessia - 23.5 k tons.
The Russian and Turkish vice premiers sign the agreement under the watchful gaze of the premiers of both countries.
Source: Russian Government
Is Russia becoming more self-sufficient in food? What are the plans or strategies for the Russian fresh produce sector?
Since 2005, Russia has been investing billions of dollars/euros in agriculture. We are already self-sufficient in pig meat and chicken. We are now ready to export these products, even though 10-15 years ago nobody believed this was possible. We export more than 20 million tons of cereals. Of course, there are many areas where we need to substantially improve our activities. Obviously these are the dairy sector, horticulture, plant and animal breeding, etc.
The strategic goal is not only to be self-sufficient in food, but also to feed the planet. And I do believe that Russia has a perfect chance to be able to do this. And I do hope that together with the Netherlands (one of the world leaders in the sphere of innovations for the Agro & Food industries) we will do it faster and in more sustainable way.
Do you have an update on lifting the embargo of European fresh produce?
This question should be addressed to the European Commission. We are ready to respond to the friendly actions of our European partners.
For more information:
Oleg Pugaev
Embassy of the Russian Federation to the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Tel +31 70 346 8888
Mob +31 62 6496059
Fax +31 70 361 7960
Email opugaev@hotmail.com