BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 17
By Ilkin Seyfaddini - Trend:
Uzbekistan increased exports of wild cherries in physical volume by two times, to 23,500 tons, in the period from January through May 2020, compared to the same period of 2019, Trend reports with reference to the State Statistics Committee of Uzbekistan.
The total value of cherry exports was $48 million. The largest exports of wild cherries were to Kazakhstan, Russia and Kyrgyzstan, respectively, 12,400 tons for $17.7 million, 6,700 tons for $11.2 million and 4,100 tons for $18.1 million.
The largest growth of cherry export over the reporting period was recorded in Belarus (by 9.6 times, up to 50 tons worth $117,800), in Ukraine (by 6.9 times, up to 59 tons worth $95,700) and in Russia (by four times to 6.700 tons worth $11.2 million).
Meanwhile, the supply of wild cherries to China fell by 75.5 percent to 44.6 tons, worth $203 million.
Uzbekistan is one of the world's top three wild cherry producers, after Turkey and US, and exports from 35,000 to 50,000 tons of wild cherries annually, the report said.
In recent years, more and more Uzbek wild cherries have been shipped to China and South Korea, but it has been difficult to ensure the necessary quality, cooling, calibration and packaging, which has constrained the increase in supply.
From 2011 to 2019, many new cherry orchards were planted in Uzbekistan. This shifted entire areas from growing cotton and cereals to growing vegetables and fruits, and wild cherries became one of the most attractive crops for Uzbek farmers.
The country will lose 15-20 percent of its wild cherry harvest this year, according to preliminary estimates, due to the cold weather in early April.
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