Could Polish apples be shipped to India instead of Russia? It is a possibility, but its possible success is not clear. "We are in talks with buyers in India, but I don't even know yet what volume of apples we could sell there," says Janusz Stasiak, president of San-Export-Group, an association of five producer groups in the area of Sandomierz.
"India is a huge market, but also a very large food producer. We hope that we'll at least get the chance to ship some of our products there," says Stasiak.
It is worth noting that last year, members of the San-Export-Group exported about 50-70 thousand tonnes of apples to Russia. Producers estimate that because of the embargo they could lose up to 50 million Euro.
The only solution to cut the multi-million losses would be finding new markets, hence the negotiations with customers in India. The problem, in any case, cannot be solved easily, "and even if we managed to reach this market, growers would still suffer losses; it is rather a way to get some return on the cost of production," admits Stasiak.
He explains that "a serious problem is the decline in prices. With the loss of the largest destination, which received hundreds of thousands of tonnes, there is a huge surplus. This information is available around the world, and thus everyone wants to buy as cheaply as possible."
But this is not the only problem. Polish apples in India will not be so competitive in terms of price. "First of all, you need to sell large volumes for the activity to be profitable. Apart from transport, you still need to add the cost of storing fruit in subtropical climates," explains Stasiak. "Accessing a market like this also takes a long time. Argentina, for example, struggled for nine years to introduce its apples in China."
Growers are also considering Western Europe, but that path is also hard.
Growers in the Italian Tyrol and French Brittany fear Polish growers. "The former already stated they would introduce stricter inspections for Polish apples," informs the president of San-Export-Group.
"If we are unable to find buyers for the fruit grown in Sandomierz, some producers may not survive the year."
Apple prices are historically low in Sandomierz. A 15-kilo box in the wholesale market costs just about 10 zł (2.40 Euro). Last year, which was already not the best from the point of view of producers, the price was 1.5 zł (0.36 Euro), down from the 2 zł (0.48 Euro) of two years ago," says Stasiak.
Growers seek refuge also in EU compensations. For each kilo of apples left on the trees or given to charities growers receive 0.70 zloty (0.17 Euro). The Świętokrzyskie province has already received about 5 thousand. requests for compensation.
These compensations will cover only part of the losses. "Do not forget that growers must somehow transport their products, e.g. to food banks, and this has to be done in small shipments, as such institutions are not always prepared to store large amounts.
