In 2015, Serbia was the world's biggest raspberry producer. Back then, the country shipped 100,000 tonnes, to overtake the previous market leaders: Poland and Chile. In the 2016 season, however, the demand for Serbian raspberries declined sharply, and this year the situation is even more complicated, as 40% of the harvest was completely lost, as reported by propozitsiya.com, quoted by fermer.bg.
According to Alexander Jovanovic, of Aleksandar International, one of Serbia's fruit and vegetable leaders, the reason for this is that in the year 2016 some Serbian raspberry producers combined traditional varieties with inferior Polish varieties.
"This is a great pity. Because of this practice carried out by several companies, the whole industry will suffer the consequences," he stated.
In Jovanovic's company, only two varieties of raspberries are grown: the Meeker and Willamette. They are convinced that other varieties, in particular the Polka and Polana, cannot match the same level of production quality.
The Meeker and Willamette are varieties that are extremely aromatic, and they do not require the use of pesticides and herbicides when grown, informs Jovanovic.
Source: expert.bg
