Rise in apple imports to Russia

Russia’s apple imports are set to increase in 2020/21 due to a drop in domestic production, according to a USDA report. Many commercial pear growers are replanting their orchards to apples to take advantage of the growing demand. Russia is the world’s largest apple importer in volume terms. In the 2019/2020 campaign, imports were down 5% y-o-y to 750,572 tons, but were up 15% in value. The three main suppliers of apples to Russia are Moldova (31%), Serbia (19.6%), and Azerbaijan (9.6%). In 2020/2021, Russian apple imports are forecast to increase by 8% due to the significant decline in domestic production. In the period from July to August 2020, imports were up by over 20%, and this trend is expected to continue in the off season, as local production is less available during the winter and spring season.