Uzbekistan may push away China, Serbia and Moldova from Russian apple market within the nearest future, believe an expert

Thanks to numerous loans of international banks, fruit sector in Uzbekistan has been developing rapidly. Thus, the area of intensive apple orchards has been increasing, and this Central Asian country may considerably increase its apple export to Russia, squeezing away existing leaders: China, Serbia, Moldova and EU, reported Andrey Yarmak, economist of investment centre of FAO, to APK-Inform project.

“The crop of Uzbek apples will reach some 1 million tons by 2020,” he said. “At the same time, local population is 33 million, so domestic market is not large; being an inland country hinders the export, therefore the producers will be ready to offer the best prices.”

Neighbouring Russia is the most convenient trade partner, and Uzbek apples will be very competitive there.