From early January to late November 2021, Uzbekistan imported 455.8 thousand tonnes of potatoes, EastFruit analysts report with reference to the Ministry of Economic Development and Poverty Reduction of the Republic of Uzbekistan. According to analysts, the volume of potato imports in 11 months of 2021 is 8% more than the total volume imported in 2020.

The previous record was set last year: according to EastFruit analysts, imports of potatoes to Uzbekistan in 2020 amounted to 421 thousand tonnes, which was in turn almost 1.5 times higher than in 2019. We remind you that potatoes have become the main import position of the fruit and vegetable sector in Uzbekistan over the past few years. The annual volume of potato imports did not exceed 50 thousand tonnes until 2017, and it has increased sharply since then.

In 2021, the main suppliers of potatoes to Uzbekistan were Iran, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan and the Netherlands, which together accounted for 95-99% of all imports.

The Plant Protection Agency of Uzbekistan reported on November 12, 2021 that cases of detection of especially dangerous pests – golden and pale potato nematodes in imported batches of marketable potatoes from Iran and Pakistan became regular from September 25, 2021. According to the State Statistics Committee of the republic, the total share of Iran and Pakistan in January-October 2021 accounted for 58% of the total volume of potato imports to Uzbekistan. The bad news was that 4250 tonnes of out of 110 thousand tonnes of potatoes brought to Uzbekistan from the beginning of August to November 11, 2021, were found to contain dangerous nematodes. Considering the needs of the republic in potatoes, The Agency for Quarantine and Plant Protection of Uzbekistan held online negotiations with the quarantine services of Iran and Pakistan. As a result, agreements were reached on strengthening quarantine supervision by Iran and Pakistan and providing them with lists of potato producers whose products meet the phytosanitary requirements of Uzbekistan.

There was another bad news on potato imports in early December. Kazakhstan introduces a temporary ban on the export of potatoes and carrots for a period of 3 months. This decision was made to address the deficit in the domestic market and stabilize prices. These restrictions become effective at the end of December. The share of Kazakhstan in the total volume of potato imports to Uzbekistan amounted to 29% in 9 months of 2021.

From the beginning of January to the end of September 2021, the average wholesale prices for potatoes of the 2021 harvest and their dynamics were similar to those in 2020. But, due to the increased demand in the potato market in Russia, prices began to rise in Uzbekistan by the domino effect at the end of September 2021. Three weeks later, in just one week – from October 14 to October 21, 2021, the average wholesale prices increased from 3,500 to 5,000 UZS/kg ($0.33 – $0.47), i.e. by 43%.

As a factor restraining further growth in prices for potatoes, the upper house of the Uzbek parliament approved a law on amending the Tax Code on October 21, 2021, which cancels the value added tax (VAT) on the import and sale of a number of products, including potatoes. According to the document, imports and sales of potatoes are exempt from VAT from October 10 to December 31, 2021.

From November 4 to December 6, 2021, the average wholesale prices for potatoes in Uzbekistan range from 4,500 to 4,500 UZS/kg ($0.42 – $0.51). As of December 3, the average wholesale prices for potatoes are 5000 UZS/kg ($0.46), which is 43% higher than on the same date in 2020 and 2.2 times higher than on the same date in 2019.

Сообщение Potato imports to Uzbekistan from January to November exceeded the total volume of 2020 появились сначала на EastFruit.

From December 1, 2021, phytosanitary certificates for goods are checked and issued through the “Single Window” information system at the checkpoints of cars across the state border of Uzbekistan. The stamping and registration of trade documents by phytosanitary authorities has been canceled. According to EastFruit experts, such simplifications represent the second stage in the implementation of advanced digital technologies while simplifying customs procedures.

To further increase the efficiency of the customs authorities through the introduction of advanced digital technologies in simplifying customs procedures, a Decree of the President of Uzbekistan “On simplifying customs procedures and further improving the organizational structure of the state customs service” was adopted in September 2021.

Since there are no reservations in the document regarding the application of its provisions to certain categories of goods, the stipulated provisions equally apply to fruit and vegetable products.

Under the document, out-of-category customs posts for remote electronic declaration are being created in Uzbekistan. From October 1, 2021, they are to be established in the departments of the State Customs Committee (SCC) in Tashkent, Syrdarya, Kashkadarya and Khorezm regions, and from April 1, 2022 – gradually in other territorial departments of the SCC.

Simplifying of customs procedures stipulated by the Decree and improving the activities of customs authorities are carried out in several stages.

1. a) starting from October 1, 2021,customs posts of remote electronic declaration will carry out remote customs clearance of electronic cargo customs declarations submitted by participants in foreign economic activity;
2. b) starting from December 1, 2021,at the checkpoints of cars across the State Border of Uzbekistan:

– the relevant documents for the goods of phytosanitary and veterinary authorities are checked and drawn up through the customs information system “Single Window” or information systems integrated with it;

– the stamping and registration of shipping documents by phytosanitary and veterinary authorities is canceled;

– the prepayment of all fees payable on the basis of a single invoice before vehicles enter the border point is being introduced.

1. c) starting from January 1, 2022:

– after the customs authorities make a decision on the return of overpaid or collected customs payments, these funds are returned to the participants of foreign economic activity within three working days;

– the minimum period of deferral or installment payment of customs payments is 14 days, during which no interest is charged;

– the amount of additional accrued customs payments that are not subject to collection and return is set up to 20% of the base calculated value;

– the conditional release of goods is being introduced before the completion of the examination to determine the code of goods under the commodity nomenclature for foreign economic activity, appointed by the customs authority, with the provision of payment of customs duties;

– the possibility is created to provide a unified security to ensure the fulfillment of obligations to make customs payments to a participant in foreign economic activity within several customs operations;

– at the request of a participant in foreign economic activity, the customs authorities make a preliminary decision to determine the amount of customs payments payable on goods.

Сообщение Uzbekistan simplifies customs procedures through the introduction of digital technologies появились сначала на EastFruit.

As EastFruit has repeatedly reported, it will be difficult for Uzbekistan to supply its population with potatoes in 2021/22. Despite serious government efforts to reduce dependence on potato imports, they continue to break records every year. We analyzed this in detail at the beginning of this year, explaining why Uzbekistan is unlikely to significantly reduce the relatively high domestic prices for potatoes.

However, the situation began to worsen after Russia and Belarus, apart from reducing areas planted with potatoes, faced unfavorable weather conditions for their cultivation. This led to a sharp rise in prices for potatoes during their harvesting and an increase in their imports both in Russia and Belarus.

Since Russia is usually one of the main suppliers of potatoes to Uzbekistan, Uzbek traders quickly turned their attention to importing from Iran and Pakistan, where they found a serious competitor – again Russia. As a result, wholesale prices for potatoes in Uzbekistan are now at a record level for this period – they are 36% higher than last year on the same date and more than double the level of prices in 2019.

However, the bad news doesn’t end there. It turns out that potatoes imported from Pakistan and Iran are often infected with dangerous pests that pose a potential threat not only to potato growers, but also to tomato, pepper and even melon growers.

On November 12, 2021, the Agency for Quarantine and Plant Protection of Uzbekistan issued a press release informing about the measures it has taken to protect the country’s potato and vegetable growing from dangerous quarantine pests – golden and pale  nematodes (lat Globodera rostochiensis and Globodera pallida, respectively), which Uzbekistan frequently detected in imported potatoes from Iran and Pakistan in 2021.

It is reported that, 110 thousand tonnes of potatoes for consumption have been imported to Uzbekistan since August 2021, of which 104 thousand tonnes have certificates of compliance with phytosanitary requirements. At the same time, 3.5 thousand tonnes (3.2%) of potatoes were returned to the exporting country, 775 tonnes (0.7%) were destroyed at special facilities due to the impossibility of returning them t. Moreover, in accordance with the International Plant Protection Convention in 2021, the Agency sent complaints to Iran and Pakistan about violations of the phytosanitary requirements of Uzbekistan.

Thus, Uzbekistan found itself in a tough situation – there are not so many alternative suppliers of potatoes in the world, and the countries that can supply the required volumes are quite far away. This means that the already record-breaking expensive potatoes in Uzbekistan will cost even more, if supplies from Iran and Pakistan are banned.

Therefore, given the country’s need for potatoes, the agency decided not to go for a ban, but to negotiate with the quarantine services of Pakistan and Iran. As a result, it was decided that these countries will strengthen quarantine control and provide a list of potato producers in accordance with the phytosanitary requirements of Uzbekistan. The list is published on the agency’s website.

As a result of negotiations, no cases of nematode infestation in potato products imported from Pakistan from November 3 to 10, 2021 have been identified. This means that there is a progress and hope for the normalization of supplies and, most importantly, reducing the risks for the fruit and vegetable business in Uzbekistan.

Both types of nematodes are quarantined objects in Uzbekistan and the Eurasian Economic Union. So far, there are no effective chemical means of protection against them. In areas where pests are common up to 30 years old, potatoes, peppers, tomatoes, eggplant and melons should not be grown.

In addition, if nematodes are found in Uzbekistan, vegetable products from Uzbekistan, including greenhouse vegetables, which now bring multimillion-dollar revenues to the country’s producers, may be banned from export to Russia and other countries in the region. Thus, it is crucial for Uzbekistan to avoid this serious threat.

It should be noted that prices for potatoes in Uzbekistan have slightly decreased over the past week. This means the supplies were normalized.

According to the results of 9 months of 2021, Uzbekistan became the second largest sales market for potatoes from Iran, according to EastFruit. Iran exported 126.4 thousand tonnes of potatoes to Uzbekistan during this time – a record volume for supplies in this direction. The largest volumes of Iranian potatoes were sent to Afghanistan – more than 125 thousand tonnes. By the way, according to preliminary estimates, approximately the same volume of Iranian potatoes was exported to Russia as to Uzbekistan.

Сообщение Where to buy potatoes? Uzbekistan worries about nematode threat in potatoes from Pakistan and Iran появились сначала на EastFruit.

According to information received by EastFruit from players in the Russian fruit and vegetable trade, the procedures for importing fresh apples from a number of countries to Russia have become much more complicated this week. They refer to a letter from the Rosselkhoznadzor, which prescribes to carefully check each batch of apples from these countries for exceeding the maximum permissible concentration (MPC) of residues of pesticide substances, including such as Pyrimethanil, Chlorpyrifos and Hexachlorobenzene.

This leads to the fact that trucks and containers with apples are delayed for several days. Accordingly, suppliers incur significant losses and believe that these measures are a form of nontariff barriers to imports in order to support the domestic producer against the background of an excess of apples, described in detail in our material #freshapplecrisis. Considering the delays in deliveries, the Russian apple market “revived” a little. True, the prices for apples on the spot market have not yet risen, but already in deliveries for the next week, Russian supermarket chains take this factor into account and raise the ceiling of the purchase price even for an inexpensive apple. According to market participants, prices are also supported by the lack of re-exports of Polish apples to the Russian market through Belarus.

Moldova is not among the countries included in the conditional “black list”. Perhaps that is why the prices for apples in Moldova began to grow, and even preconditions were outlined for the rise in prices for the apple of the “Idared” variety.

At the moment, the average level of wholesale prices for apples on the Russian market is 10-15% lower than last year, but prices are still significantly higher than in the 2018/19 season.

It is interesting to note that in September 2021 Russia sharply increased its apple imports compared to September 2020, although in August imports were, on the contrary, lower than a year earlier. The main increase in apple exports to Russia in September 2021 was observed precisely from Moldova – supplies doubled and reached 19.4 thousand tonnes. Supplies of Iranian apples increased by 9% to 9 thousand tonnes, while Serbia reduced the exports of apples to Russia in September by 7% to 2.8 thousand tons. By the way, in August-September 2021, supplies of Serbian apples to the Russian Federation were one third lower than in 2020. Turkey, on the other hand, continued to increase its exports – apple exports to Russia in September 2021 were 23% higher than in the same month of 2020.

Сообщение More challenges on the Russian market for apple exporters from Serbia, Turkey, Iran, New Zealand and South Africa появились сначала на EastFruit.

An official statement was published on the Rosselkhoznadzor website. It says that given the information by the State Plants Quarantine Inspection of Uzbekistan on strengthening control over phytosanitary certification when exporting quarantined products to Russia, the department deems it possible to allow the import of all plant products from Fergana since April 7, 2021 with assurances of the Uzbek side, but with the exception of tomatoes and peppers.

The import of tomatoes and peppers from the Fergana region of Uzbekistan to the Russian Federation was banned from November 26, 2020. The Rosselkhoznadzor explained this by referring to the tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV) detected in tomatoes. As stated by Rosselkhoznadzor, the agency introduced this restriction in order to prevent the introduction and spread of this virus in Russia, guided by paragraph 1 Article VII of the International Plant Protection Convention. Viruses of brown rugose of tomatoes, spotted wilting of tomatoes and pepino mosaic virus are not included in the Unified List of Quarantine Objects of the EAEU. As a temporary quarantine phytosanitary measure, on 27 July 2020, a requirement was introduced to ensure their absence in seeds, seedlings, tomatoes and peppers imported to Russia. The requirement will remain in effect until these viruses are included in the Unified List of Quarantine Objects of the EAEU. At the same time, the department appealed to the Eurasian Economic Commission with a request to promptly consider the issue of amending the Unified List with the indicated pests.

A ban was imposed on the supply of all plant products from the Fergana region of Uzbekistan to Russia on December 11, 2020 due to the detection of the khapra beetle (Trogoderma granarium Ev) in dried apricots that arrived in Russia.

Around this time, imports of vegetables and fruits from other countries were also banned for quarantine reasons. Bans were imposed on fruit and vegetables from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey and even Belarus.

According to the Rosselkhoznadzor report dated December 3, 2020, during the quarantine phytosanitary control of a 1-ton commodity consignment of dried apricots from Uzbekistan, a quarantine object for Russia and the EAEU member states, a khapra beetle (Trogoderma granarium Ev.), was detected. This batch entered Russia accompanied by an Uzbek phytosanitary certificate attesting that the products comply with Russian phytosanitary requirements.

Khapra beetle is considered officially eliminated in Uzbekistan. In 2008, due to the detection of the khapra beetle in dried fruits, the Rosselkhoznadzor already introduced temporary restrictions on the import of quarantined products from Uzbekistan, which were later canceled based on the results of an audit of the Uzbek phytosanitary control system.

Khapra beetle is a quarantine pest for many countries, including the states of East and South Africa, Bahrain, China, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Germany, Canada, USA, Mexico, Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Chile and New Zealand.

Back in early December 2020, the Rosselkhoznadzor planned to initiate negotiations with the Uzbek side to discuss the current situation. As evidenced by the decision of the Rosselkhoznadzor of April 7 of this year, the negotiations were successful, with the exception of tomatoes and peppers.

Сообщение Russia lifts temporary restrictions on the imports of plant products from the Fergana region of Uzbekistan, except for tomatoes and peppers появились сначала на EastFruit.

A video conference of the Rosselkhoznadzor and the State Plants Quarantine Inspection under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan took place in the beginning of April.

The Uzbek side spoke about the measures taken after the discovery of a khapra beetle (Trogoderma granarium Ev.), a quarantine pest for the EAEU, in a batch of dried apricots that entered the territory of Russia from the Fergana region of Uzbekistan in December 2020. The Rosselkhoznadzor was forced to impose a ban on the import of all quarantined products from the Fergana region of the Republic.

According to representatives of the foreign department, the conditions of products stored in 23 warehouses in the region is monitored weekly. According to the Uzbek specialists, no cases of pest detection have been revealed for now. In addition, the State Plants Quarantine Inspection, together with the administration of the Fergana region, adopted a program for the protection of industrial areas from harmful organisms for 2021-2022. Cooperation with biological laboratories is underway and agrotechnical measures are being carried out.

The Uzbek side noted that in the near future the country intends to increase the number of logistics centers that accept agricultural products from individuals. Uzbek representatives added that it is private farms that today represent the main source of the spread of quarantine organisms. The increase in the number of logistics centers will provide phytosanitary control (supervision) over plant products produced by local farms.

Rosselkhoznadzor, in turn, appealed to representatives of the State Plants Quarantine Inspection of Uzbekistan with a request to send an analysis of the current situation and the results of measures taken on the territory of industrial farms and greenhouses in the Fergana region.

Furthermore, during the negotiations, the parties discussed the prospects for scientific cooperation in the field of phytosanitary observations between the two countries.

Сообщение Uzbekistan strengthens phytosanitary control of agricultural products in warehouses появились сначала на EastFruit.

The Rosselkhoznadzor warned the Ministry of Agriculture of Turkmenistan about the possible suspension of the imports of Turkmen tomatoes due to repeated cases of infection of these products with the Tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV)

According to the correspondent of “KazakhZerno.kz”, the discussion of this aspect took place during a video conference of representatives of the competent services of the two countries.

As noted, the Russian side at the end of February wrote a letter to its Turkmen colleagues, insisting on  tougher inspections. In response, specialists from Turkmenistan reported that monitoring of greenhouse complexes on the territory of their country had been carried out. However, due to the lack of proper laboratory equipment, the examination was only visual. For this reason, the Rosselkhoznadzor invited colleagues from Turkmenistan to familiarize the republic’s specialists with the experience accumulated in the Russian Federation.

Read also: Rosselkhoznadzor lifts ban on tomato imports from more companies in Azerbaijan

The Turkmen side stressed that supervision over products exported to Russia has been strengthened. Thus, inspectors carry out pre-shipment control of plant products directly at supplier’s level.

Сообщение Russia strengthens control on the imports of tomatoes from Turkmenistan появились сначала на EastFruit.

China is the largest food consumer and importer with an inexhaustible domestic market. Uzbekistan has already introduced 14 types of fruit and vegetable products to the Chinese market. In the coming years, it plans to obtain permits for the exports of lemons, grapes, plums, peaches, persimmons, and other products.

Muslim Khalilov, the chief specialist of the Export Promotion Department of the State Plant Quarantine Inspection of Uzbekistan, told Podrobno.uz why the process of approving the exports of fruits and vegetables to China can last up to 5 years, what are the main problems of domestic exporters, and how the pandemic affected the supply.

– Where is Uzbekistan in the total volume of Chinese imports of fruits and vegetables?

For us, China is one of the priority countries in terms of exports. It is a country of interest for our entrepreneurs because it is the largest consumer market. Unfortunately, the total share in terms of supplies to this country from Uzbekistan is still small, but we are striving to raise our level in this regard. We requested permits for new products and we are working with entrepreneurs in all regions of our country. Today, there are about 500 export companies to China in Uzbekistan.

Read also: Development of IT technologies a priority for the agricultural sector in Uzbekistan

– What is supplied to the markets of China today? What types of products from Uzbekistan are the Chinese most interested in?

Uzbekistan entered this market relatively recently. Half of the list of exported items has only been opened in the last three years. The Chinese are interested in almost everything.

Today, 14 types of products are exported to China: cherries, melons, fresh and dried hot peppers, sesame seeds, walnuts without shells, sweet and bitter almonds, peanuts, raisins, dried apricots, mung bean, and grape seed (it contains antioxidants that are used in the production of dietary supplements and for cosmetology). We have exported all of this directly and in large volumes without any problems and restrictions.

– How easy is it to work with importers from China?

Chinese importers are more selective. At the same time, friendly relations with China and close cooperation with its General Customs Administration allow for obtaining permits in a short timeframe to promote products to the Chinese market.

In general, it takes 1 to 5 years to obtain a permit for one item. During this time, each proposed position goes through an average of eight stages of checks. The importing country conducts a pest risk analysis to carefully study the technical information – what varieties exist, how they are produced, in what volumes, what chemicals are used in the cultivation of a particular crop, what microorganisms these species are susceptible to, and so on.

At the final stage, inspectors come to Uzbekistan, visit the fields and packing shops, check for cleanliness, and prepare a final conclusion after which only on the basis of the protocol on phytosanitary requirements, a permit is granted to import these products from Uzbekistan. This is quite normal. For example, the United States issued a permit for the import of Chinese apples only 15 years later.

– What impact did the coronavirus pandemic have on shipments last year?

The pandemic affected exports. For example, if in 2019 we exported about 550 tons of sweet cherries to China, then the total was only 147 tons in 2020. This happened because most of the trucks were idle at the borders and many Chinese importers were unable to arrive – they are very scrupulous people and they have to see the goods they are buying. However, I must say that the exports of mung bean increased last year from 28,000 tons in 2019 up to 75,000 tons in 2020.

With all the restrictions associated with the pandemic, the statistics still show an increase in the volume of supplies to China. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, 55,000 tons of agricultural products were exported to China in 2019 for a total of $48 million. Last year, 92,000 tons of fruits were exported, which brought in $71.5 million.

– What are the problems when exporting to China?

For exports to any country with a large competitive market, the same problematic issues can be noted – these are logistics and price fluctuations. Also, our marketing is underdeveloped. We, as a phytosanitary service, obtain permits for the import of our products to foreign countries. Then, it is up to the entrepreneurs to make exports work – to promote and advertise their products and to make it clear that the price and quality of the products match. This does not work well for us yet.

– What work is being done to promote domestic fruit and vegetable products to the Chinese market now?

We are negotiating to expand the range of products for supplies to foreign markets to China. We recently received permission to export pomegranates and soon they will be delivered to China; only some small formalities remain.

This year it is expected to obtain a permit for exports of lemons and prunes as well. These products have already passed a majority of the checks. We will promote grapes, plums, peaches, persimmons, and other fruits until 2023.

Сообщение Uzbekistan expands range of fruit and vegetable exports to China появились сначала на EastFruit.

The cultivation of lemons in the Republic of Uzbekistan has become widespread. According to Uza.uz, prices in the domestic market have increased significantly due to an increase in demand for lemons during the quarantine. It is possible to increase the supply of lemons and reduce prices by importing these citrus fruits.

According to Durdona Ochilova, the press secretary of the State Plant Quarantine Inspectorate under the Cabinet of Ministers, there is permission to import all high-demand products that are not grown in Uzbekistan. Even though lemons are grown in the country, they are not enough to meet domestic demand: the population’s annual demand for lemons is 125,000 tons and 30,000 tons are grown in Uzbekistan. With this in mind, the relevant authorities can issue a permit for the imports of lemons in May, June, and August.

Read also: Agricultural service centres to be created in Uzbekistan with support from the World Bank

Durdona Ochilova clarifies that for imports, the authorized plant quarantine body of the exporting country must provide a phytosanitary certificate for its product. On the basis of this certificate, an electronic application is submitted. Previously, such applications were considered within 30 days, but now the Uzgoskarantin Inspectorate will issue a quarantined pass in three days time.

Last year, EastFruit analyzed how Uzbekistan can strengthen its position among the world leaders in fruit exports. The conclusion of our specialists was the improved quality and safety of products; a modernized set of varieties; and improved approaches to storage, cooling, processing, and packaging. These would allow Uzbekistan to solve one of its main problems, which is a high level of dependence on product supplies to Russia.

Сообщение Uzbekistan prepares to import lemons to meet high demand появились сначала на EastFruit.

EastFruit experts received a lot of feedback on two high-profile events in recent days concerning the fruit and vegetable business of Uzbekistan. First, Russia placed a ban on the supply of greenhouse tomatoes and peppers from the Fergana region in Uzbekistan. The second event was the discovery of a quarantine object in a batch of dried fruits in Russia from Uzbekistan, which now threatens a complete ban on supplies.

Both events are associated with Rosselkhoznadzor, which is a Russian organization that is notorious in agribusiness as a tool of Russian policy to put pressure on other countries. Since it is Rosselkhoznadzor that has initiated many bans over the years on supplies of vegetables, fruits, and other food products from various countries like Poland, Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia, at the same moment in time of a political confrontation between them, it is not surprising that each decision from this organization arouses suspicion in the international business community.

In particular, the majority of fruit and vegetable business representatives in Uzbekistan, with whom EastFruit managed to communicate with directly, are convinced that the latest events are an echo of some political negotiations, although no one can definitively confirm this. An alleged reason is a possible delay in Uzbekistan’s leadership regarding their decision to join the Eurasian Economic Union. However, there have been no facts provided yet to confirm this allegation.

A quick survey of EastFruit’s Telegram channel subscribers showed that 74% of readers share the point of view on the politics behind detecting quarantine objects, and only 26% believe that the main reason is the poor plant protection system of farmers in Uzbekistan. It is important to note that the survey was conducted for only 10 minutes, and during this time 115 participants gave answers. Naturally, this poll cannot be considered representative because there are relatively few Uzbek farmers and traders subscribed (and certainly not more than subscribers from Russia), but it shows the relevance of the topic and the thoughts of market participants.

Read also: Uzbekistan sharply reduced the export of fruits and vegetables to Ukraine in 2020

The first incident with greenhouse vegetables aroused particular suspicion among industry experts. After all, Rosselkhoznadzor itself said that the tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV) was not even included in the list of quarantine objects in the Russian Federation and that there is not much experience in its detection and testing systems. Therefore, it is surprising how it could be discovered by them.

At the same time, market experts believe that, in any case, Uzbekistan should pay attention to the issues of phytosanitary control and plant protection within the country, and not look for alleged external reasons. “Uzbekistan is actively increasing the export of vegetables, fruits, berries, herbs, and nuts, which means that it is becoming an increasingly prominent player in the world fruit and vegetable market. Therefore, more attention will be paid to Uzbek fruit and vegetable products. This also means that more and more imported seeds and seedlings are imported into the country every year, and with them, new pests and diseases can penetrate into the territory of Uzbekistan, which carries no less potential threat to the industry than the closure of external markets. Therefore, the latest signals from Russia should become a good clue for the Uzbek fruit and vegetable industry and each of its participants about the need to urgently pay attention to the plant protection system and to modernize the quarantine and phytosanitary control system in the country,” says Andriy Yarmak, an economist at the Investment Centre of the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

Сообщение Uzbekistan and Russian relations – its getting complicated, are fruits and vegetables a tool? появились сначала на EastFruit.