In the period from January to May this year, 133.1 thousand tonnes of fresh vegetables were imported into Bulgaria, which is 3.6% more than in the same period last year. This is the data revealed in the operational analysis of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry (MAFG). The growth of imports of fresh vegetables is mainly due to an increase in the supply of potatoes and tomatoes, respectively by 3.8 thousand tonnes, or 17.5%, and by 4.9 thousand tonnes, or 13.8%.
There has been a significant increase in the import of mushrooms (by more than twenty times), while the country has imported more than twice as much garlic and spinach. The growth in the import of lettuce, pumpkins and aubergines oscillates between 10.6 and 39.1 percent.
Looking at traditionally imported vegetables, there have been drops in the volumes purchased in the case of cucumbers, carrots and turnips, onions, some types of mushrooms, peppers and cabbage, ranging from 2.4% in the case of cucumbers to 25.2% in the case of cabbage.
During the first five months of the year, Bulgaria also imported 99,000 tonnes of fresh fruit, which is 5.2% less than in the same period of 2016. The most imported fruits are still non-domestic species, such as citrus fruits and bananas. A significant share also corresponds to the supply of apples, which however recorded a 1.9% drop and reached 22.2 thousand tonnes.
Looking at other fruits, decreases in the volume imported have been reported for melons, grapes, peaches, nectarines and watermelons, while the import of strawberries, pears, plums, sour cherries and nuts has grown from a minimum of 12.7% to nearly three times as much, with the most significant growth being recorded by cherries.
Source: duma.bg
