Russia prepares to rise the tomato import quota of 250 thousand tonnes to 300 thousand tonnes, applied to Turkey, which delights producers and exporters who are about to fill the existing quota.
According to the reports of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 1.1 billion tonnes of fresh fruit and vegetables were produced worldwide in 2018. The share of tomatoes in this production was recorded as 182 million tonnes.
“Quotas must be fully removed”
Hayrettin Uçak, Chairman of the Board of the Aegean Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Exporters’ Association (EYMSİB), said that Russia, the traditional market for fresh fruit and vegetable exports, continues to rank first in tomato despite the quotas applied.
Stating that they are pleased with the works of Russia to raise the tomato quota from 250 thousand tonnes to 300 thousand tonnes, Uçak said, “According to data as of April 10, 2021, fresh tomato exports already reached to 249 thousand 746 tonnes. At the moment exporter companies focused on the news from Russia for new export connections.”
Indicating that there was a 28 percent decrease in tomato exports to this country in 2020 due to the quota, Uçak noted, “Our exports fell from 86 million to 62 million dollars. The biggest factor in this decline is the quota itself. If this quota is lifted, we can raise our tomato exports to Russia over 100 million dollars. Russian people like and demand the Turkish tomato. So we demand that this quota be lifted completely. Not only we, but also the Russian people do.”