Blueberry imports to Russia continue to grow at record rates

Russian consumers continue to be actively interested in new specialty products despite declining income levels. The latest berry trend in Russia in recent years has become blueberry, according to EastFruit analysts. This is confirmed both by the development of domestic production and the active growth of imports.

In 2020, Russia imported 7.600 tons of blueberries for $ 55,9 million, 65% more than the volume of imports from the previous year. Therefore, the growth rates of blueberry imports to Russia, despite the coronavirus pandemic, continue to accelerate.

“Considering that blueberries are the most expensive berry on the market and that the average Russian consumer is not very wealthy, it might seem that consumption should not grow very quickly. However, speaking of the prospects for the consumption of blueberries in Russia, it is necessary to take into account other important factors, namely: the increasing popularity of a healthy lifestyle (HLS) and that blueberries are considered almost a superfood; Russian consumers are most familiar with the closest relative of blueberries - forest blueberries (which is why blueberries are not so exotic for them); And, more importantly, the consumption of blueberries per resident in Russia is negligible 70 grams per year or ten times less than, for example, in the United States and much less than in most EU countries.

EastFruit's wholesale price monitoring shows that blueberry prices in Russia during its massive harvest in the region (July-August), as a rule, are between one and a half and two times higher than in Ukraine, Poland and Belarus. However, the price difference has tended to decrease recently due to the development of domestic blueberry production in Russia.

The immense prospects for growth of blueberry production in Russia were also discussed in the first professional research of the regional market "The market for tall blueberries in Eastern Europe: Ukraine, Russia, Belarus", prepared by the independent analytical agency Fruit- Inform. The study even lists the specific names of blueberry varieties that are grown in different countries, as well as the areas, yields, and production, import, and export prospects for blueberries in these countries over the next five years.

Meanwhile, the national production of blueberries is not up to the needs of consumers, the main money in this market is obtained by the suppliers of Peru, Morocco and Chile, which together provide around 70% of the supply volume of fresh blueberries. to Russia. In the mass production season, the main suppliers of blueberries to the Russian market are Serbia, Belarus, Ukraine (through re-exports) and Georgia. Georgia is the fastest growing provider. We also note the significant progress in the production and export of blueberries that Belarus has made in recent years. In 2020, the supply of Belarusian blueberries to the Russian market doubled.

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