The nut business in Uzbekistan has been attracting a lot of investment in recent years, as the country has excellent conditions for growing a wide range of nut crops. EastFruit analysts have prepared a review of prices for the main nuts grown in Uzbekistan, and compared them to last year prices.

First of all, we note that pistachios of local production remain the most expensive nut in Uzbekistan. It is a wild plant that belongs to forest products in Uzbekistan. These pistachios are smaller in size than the cultivated ones, but the country has been trying to establish the industrial cultivation of these expensive nuts for several years, and announces very ambitious plans in this area.

Inshell hazelnuts in Uzbekistan are the second most expensive nut. Moreover, they cost much more than in Georgia or even in Russia. Wholesale hazelnuts in Uzbekistan can be 3 times more expensive than in Georgia, and they could also be grown there. However, so far there are no initiatives to grow hazelnuts in Uzbekistan.

Inshell almonds in Uzbekistan are not as expensive as in other countries, but they also differ in quality. There are local almonds, but there are almost no industrial fruit-bearing almond orchards in the country. As for walnuts, it is the most affordable type of nuts. In this segment, Uzbekistan has started laying industrial orchards, mainly of the Chandler variety.

How have prices for nuts changed in Uzbekistan over the year?

As you see in the chart below, prices for nuts have changed significantly over the year. Moreover, two types of nuts fell sharply in price, while the other two, on the contrary, rose sharply.

It should also be noted that wholesale prices for nuts in Uzbekistan change contrary to the global trends. First of all, walnut prices have decreased by one third, while, on the contrary, global walnut prices are at a record high now. Obviously, there is an issue with the quality and consolidation of walnut volumes for export, although Uzbekistan is among the world leaders in the export of walnuts.

The price of pistachios has risen by almost a third, but this is in line with global trends. The pistachio harvest in 2021 should have been low in the US and Turkey, as pistachio is known for its intermittent fruiting. However, a drought in California exacerbated the problem (see how pistachios are grown in the US here).

Iran, where a good harvest was expected, also did not have it due to weather anomalies. But the demand for pistachio in the world continued to grow. By the way, Uzbekistan has also increased its imports of pistachios in recent years, buying up to 1 000 tonnes, mainly from Iran.

The 35% decrease in the price of almonds compared to last year is contrary to global trends. Globally, almond prices have risen substantially from a very low level of last year. The main reason is the sharp decline in the almond harvest in California due to drought and water shortages (see how almonds are grown and processed in the USA here). Uzbekistan does not import almonds and actively sells them abroad.

The decrease in hazelnut price in Uzbekistan by 20% per year corresponds to the trends of the global market. The hazelnut harvest in the region has increased significantly this year having led to lower prices. Uzbekistan usually imports hazelnuts from Georgia and Azerbaijan. And in these countries, hazelnut prices decreased in the 2021/22 season.

We also note that prices for the main nuts in the Uzbek market have remained relatively stable in recent weeks. However, some changes can be expected in the near future, given the trends described in the article.

Сообщение An overview of prices for walnuts, pistachios, almonds and hazelnuts in Uzbekistan появились сначала на EastFruit.

Light walnut halves were sold in a price range of 230-250 MDL/kg ($13.1-14.2/kg) in the Chisinau markets last weekend.

The Union of Associations of Nut Crops Producers UAPCN claims that retail prices have set a historical record, which was previously 180-200 MDL/kg ($10.5-11.7/kg) and was listed for local and imported vacuum-packed walnut kernels sold only in the middle and premium segment market chains.

UAPCN members consider the rise in retail prices for kernels to be “abnormal but predictable.” There are several reasons for this. One of them appeared at the beginning of autumn. Due to precipitation, very dense grass has grown in walnut forest belts and along the roads, which greatly complicated the harvesting of nuts.  As a result, the supply of walnuts decreased, and retail prices for walnut kernels increased at the end of October.

Another reason for the shortage of supply and the rise in prices for walnut kernels in Moldovan retail is that specialized walnut farms actually ignore it. Farmers sell almost all walnut kernels to exporting traders at a stable wholesale price – about 120 MDL/kg ($6.86/kg). Only a few of them sometimes agree to work on online sales with targeted delivery of goods to a client, and mostly inshell walnuts – in order to save money on processing the walnuts. Nevertheless, retail prices for inshell walnuts sold this way are approximately twice as high as those offered to exporters (the price for them is not higher than 30-35 MDL/kg, $1.71-2/kg).

UAPCN is confident that the abnormally high retail prices for walnuts are unlikely to hold out for too long: “only until a deal of one of the exporters with a European buyer falls and kernels that have not been sold in this way will be sent to the domestic market”. The current period of high prices is unlikely to be an incentive for the purposeful systemic business of selling walnuts on the domestic market, since “in Moldova there is always a possibility of an oversupply of walnut kernels”.

Сообщение The retail price for walnut kernels has reached a historical maximum in Moldova появились сначала на EastFruit.

According to EastFruit analysts, harvesting of early walnut varieties hasstarted in Ukraine. So far, the offered volumes of the new harvest are not large. There is also an issue with walnuts having to be dried, as there were a lot of rains in different regions of Ukraine in recent days.

Nevertheless, there is also a positive factor – wholesale prices for in-shell walnuts and walnut kernels are still significantly higher than a year earlier. On average, producers can get 30-33% more for high-quality walnut kernels than at the same time last year and almost 70% more than in 2019 at the very beginning of the season.

It should be noted that prices are now formed mainly from what is left from 2020. while the 2021 peak harvesting is somewhat late. Nevertheless, market participants cannot forecast at this time whether prices will remain at a high level. They hope the US walnut factor will not have a negative impact on the market this year, since weather has been very unfavorable in California this year, and the harvest is estimated to be significantly lower than last year.

Read also: The forecast of the walnut harvest in Moldova has been increased, but it will still be relatively low

Nevertheless, the walnut harvest in Ukraine is likely to continue to increase, creating a need for increased exports. Market participants have no hopes for the growth of the domestic walnut market.

Meanwhile, in the 2020/21 season, Ukraine reduced the exports of walnuts by 20% compared to the 2019/20 season, primarily due to a decrease in global prices. Incidentally, this was the lowest export earnings from walnuts in the last four seasons. At the same time, the exports geography has changed dramatically – Turkey was only fourth in the ranking of the largest importers, while the EU countries began to buy more Ukrainian walnuts, given the low price.

Moldova, Ukraine’s main competitor in the region’s walnut market, also expects the walnut harvest to increase in 2021, although market participants believe that the harvest will be below the average for the last five years. France, another major European player, is expecting a decline in the walnut harvest. Therefore, the positive factors are numerous, and the cautious optimism of the walnut market participants is justified.

Сообщение Walnut harvesting in Ukraine begins with satisfactory prices for growers появились сначала на EastFruit.

Last week, during the annual National Conference of Walnut Growers of the Republic of Moldova, a new forecast for the current year’s walnut harvest was announced. Oleg Tirsina, chairman of the Union of Walnut Crops Associations of Moldova, believes that this year the walnut harvest will be “at least 30% higher than last year.”

In 2020, according to statistics, the gross harvest of walnuts (in-shell) in Moldova amounted to almost 15 thousand tons. This is significantly lower than the average volume- about 25 thousand tons, collected in the country over the past five years. The low production is due to the fact that at least half of all types of nut crops last year were seriously affected by spring frosts and summer droughts. The impact of this damage will be felt to some extent over another one or two seasons.

Perhaps for this very reason, even if the walnut harvest in Moldova is 30% higher than last year, it will amount to no more than 20 thousand tons, i.e. will be on average 5 thousand tons lower than the long-term average.

Earlier EastFruit reported that there was no consensus among walnut growers-members of the industry union in the first half of August regarding the assessment of the new walnut crop. The optimistic version of the forecast at that time was a 7-10% increase over 2020. The increase in the assessment to the level announced at the conference of walnut growers is motivated by good weather conditions in August and high forecasts of walnut production in large specialized farms.

At the same time, the union’s experts note that due to precipitation in the second half of August, diseases are spreading in the walnuts orchards. This requires increased attention of walnut processors to the tasks of sorting products, preparing them for storage and sale.

Сообщение The forecast of the walnut harvest in Moldova has been increased, but it will still be relatively low появились сначала на EastFruit.

Over the next 7-10 days, many walnut growers in Moldova will start harvesting the walnut harvest. Contrary to the assumptions of market operators, the harvesting of the walnut will begin in the usual time.

The heads of walnut farms note that the development of fruits in walnut orchards this year did not take place continuously: in the first half of summer – with a delay of ten to twelve days, at the end of summer their ripening was accelerated. For this reason, the country missed the period of peak sales of young green walnuts. In part, this will benefit the country’s internal walnut market, which previously was annually deprived of a significant share of marketable products, which were collected from alleys along roads and forest belts at an unripe state.

Representatives of the Union of Association of Producers of Walnut Crops of the Republic of Moldova note that it is not possible to predict the approximate volume of the walnut harvest this year. The main problem is that in the spring of last year, due to frosts in the country, walnut plantations of both forest and orchard types were badly damaged. Not all trees have fully recovered from this stress, even in well managed orchards. In some of them the yield will be lower, in some it will be higher than the average for the last five to seven years (about 25 thousand tons of in-shell walnuts).

At the same time, walnut growers note that this year, due to abundant rainfall in spring and summer, the quality of the products is likely to be high: the fruits are large, and the green peel separates well. 

Сообщение Harvesting of walnuts in Moldova will begin in the last decade of August появились сначала на EastFruit.

According to the monitoring of EastFruit, on the Moldovan market, the average wholesale prices for walnut kernels, having slightly decreased in mid-January 2021, have been stable for almost two months at the level of 90 MDL / kg ($ 5.1 / kg).

Operators of the Moldovan market considered it as “slightly higher than the average for this season of the last five years”. At the same time, in the first quarter of 2021, the difference between the wholesale prices for high (light halves) and low-quality kernels was small – about $ 0.5-1.0 / kg. Whereas, in the same period of the two previous years, the difference between the minimum and maximum prices (for the worst and the best quality grade) was more significant – $ 1.4-1.7 / kg. Also, in the beginning of 2019 and 2020, the volatility of all indicators of the Moldovan walnut market was much greater.

Walnut exporters believe that wholesale prices for walnut kernels in the spring 2021 in Moldova will no longer change significantly. Farmers have few walnuts left and the marketing season is almost over. The sale season for 2020 harvested walnuts will probably be the most stable in terms of price: the purchase domestic prices for kernels fluctuated in a relatively narrow range – 80-100 MDL / kg ($ 4.57-5.71 / kg), the average price for export deliveries was $ 6.16-6.20 / kg. The prices of the outgoing season are considered “not bad for a year of drought and pandemic” by the representatives of the Union of Associations of Producers of Nuciferous Cultures of Moldova, UAPCNM.

As EastFruit reported, in 2020, the harvest of walnuts (in shell) in Moldova amounted to about 14-16 thousand tons – this is only 50-60% of its production level a year earlier. Stocks of walnuts in agricultural enterprises and trading companies were almost completely depleted by mid-March. In the previous month, traders tried to purchase light halves of walnut kernels (Chandler, Fernor, and Peschansky varieties) for export to Germany. The proposed purchase prices were high – 120-125 MDL / kg ($ 6.85-7.14 / kg). However, even then, farmers had nothing to offer to exporters.

However, the UAPCNM industry union does not regard this as a big missed opportunity. With large amplitude of price fluctuations during the marketing season in 2018-2020, few walnut producers will continue to deliberately postpone their sales in spring in the hope of an increase in demand and prices for walnuts in theEuropean market (the main sales market).

It is worth recalling in this regard that in the spring 2019 there was a surge in exports of walnut kernels from Moldova to the European Union (mainly Germany and France). However, then the walnut was purchased relatively cheaply (60-75 MDL / kg, $ 3.4-4.3 / kg) and was also exported at a low invoice price – on average $ 5.47-5.50 / kg. As a result, at the end of 2019, Moldova sold about 15.8 thousand tons of nut kernels to foreign markets (in 2018 – 13 thousand tons, in 2017 – 13.5 thousand tons, average invoice prices – $ 7.23 / kg and $ 7.07 / kg respectively).

Another interesting observation is that the yield of walnuts in forest belts and alleys along the roads has sharply decreased due to the catastrophic drought last year in Moldova. Meanwhile, it is walnuts that still account for at least 50% of the export flow. It is often the object of competition between exporters and the cause of fluctuations in prices for walnut kernels in the domestic market. Probably, the lower amount of walnut from forest belts and alleys along the roads in the 2020-2021 season has also reduced the price volatility on the domestic market

Сообщение The first quarter of 2021: The most stable average prices for walnut kernels in Moldova over the past three years появились сначала на EastFruit.

In the Moldovan market, the wholesale prices for low-quality in-shell walnuts continue to decline. By mid-February, this product’s minimum price dropped by 3 lei/kg compared to the mid-January level – 22 lei/kg ($1.25/kg). Simultaneously, as representatives of the Union of Association of Producers of Walnut Crops of Moldova note, during the specified period, offers for the sale of relatively large batches of in-shell nuts have become noticeably less. Exporter traders could not purchase sufficient volumes (20 tons or more) of good quality products (washed and sorted) for delivery to the European Union. Therefore, they tried to buy non-varietal in-shell nuts at reduced prices for processing into kernels.

In turn, walnut farmers who still have small walnuts stocks prefer to crack, sort and sell kernels on their own. Apparently, this is because the average wholesale prices for walnut kernels in Moldova have been stable for about a month – about 90 lei/kg ($5.14/kg). The minimum prices do not fall below 85 lei/kg ($ 4.85/kg). In general, the price level for walnut kernels is close to that in February 2020.

Moreover, this month on the Moldovan market, local traders requested to purchase light halves of walnut kernels (varieties Chandler, Fernor, Peschansky) for 120-125 lei/kg ($6.85-7.14/kg) to export them to Germany. Nevertheless, this proposal did not interest Moldovan producers: on the one hand, there are very few products of the requested quality left in the country, on the other hand, walnut producers did not consider such proposals to be reliable.

Сообщение Demand drops for in-shell walnuts, rises for high-quality kernels in Moldova появились сначала на EastFruit.

Representatives from the Union of Nut Growers Associations in Moldova assert that since mid-January, the wholesale prices for the purchase and sale of walnut kernels have decreased by about 1-2 lei/kg ($0.06-0.12/kg). This sluggish process has had the greatest impact on the price of the lowest quality products of dark quarters and nut crumbs whereas the wholesale price for high-quality products – light halves of kernels – has not changed. At the beginning of this week, wholesale prices for walnut kernels have kept in the range of 90-100 lei/kg ($5.20-5.78/kg) for more than a month.

Read also: Moldovan specialist: In-shell nut prices highly dependent on product quality 

Nevertheless, the union specialists believe that in the last month of winter there is very little chance that prices for walnut kernels in Moldova will remain at the current level or increase. Tempting offers from European trading enterprises are circulating on the Moldovan market for the purchase of large lots (tens of tons) of light kernels of the Chandler variety at a price higher than the current one. Unfortunately, there are no available consignments of American and French walnut varieties of this size in the country. As a result, overseas buyers are gradually shifting their attention to adjacent markets.

In fact, the gradual decline in prices for low-quality nuts (dark kernels) indicates that walnut farmers have lost faith in the prospect of selling their products. They have begun to accept discounts from reliable buyers who are ready to pay immediately at the time of shipment.

Сообщение Prices dropping for low-quality walnut kernels in Moldova появились сначала на EastFruit.

In January, the Moldovan market showed signs of declining prices for in-shell walnuts. The reasons for this situation were explained by Oleg Tyrsine, the chairman of the Union of Nut Growers Associations in Moldova to Agroexpert.

According to Mr Tyrsine, Moldova has exported mainly nut kernels for many years and only a small part (5-7%) of the total volume of external supplies of Moldovan walnut products accounted for in-shell nuts. However, in the last two or three years, exports to the European Union of high-quality in-shell walnuts from specialized walnut farms have gradually begun to increase. The heads of these farms had ambitious plans for the 2020 harvest. In October-November last year, they hoped to sell in-shell nuts to European buyers at a price not lower than 1.8-1.9 euros/kg.

However, at the end of last year, the demand for these products was low. For this reason, some walnut growers decided to sell their stocks of in-shell nuts for processing (i.e., splitting and sorting parts of kernels).

Read also: Moldovan procurers attempt to reduce prices for in-shell walnuts

The population’s nut buyers traditionally become more active by the end of January collecting them in rural households, forests, and areas along roads. Yet, the quality of these products is often inferior to the quality from well-groomed walnut orchards and last year nature-grown nuts suffered greatly due to drought (many were small and had dark kernels inside the shell). Walnuts harvested in small batches from individuals go for processing and is exported abroad exclusively in the form of kernels by traders-exporters. It is not surprising that in the second half of winter, purchase prices for in-shell nuts are often reduced since they are usually stored in inappropriate conditions since autumn, which does not improve its quality.

However, according to Oleg Tyrsine, individual farms with large walnut orchards and infrastructure for the initial processing of nuts (e.g., cleaning away green peels, washing, drying, and sorting), began to supply French walnut varieties to the EU market in mid-January 2021 at a rather high price of more than 2 euro/kg. This once again confirms the idea that for a high-quality product, even in a sluggish market, there will be a buyer willing to pay a good price.

Сообщение Moldovan specialist: In-shell nut prices highly dependent on product quality появились сначала на EastFruit.

Wholesale prices for walnuts in Moldova increased last week. Prices for products of the highest quality category, namely light halves of nut kernels and large nuts in shells, raised the most: by about 5 lei/kg ($ 0.29 / kg). In fact, after two weeks of decline, prices for these products returned to a relatively high level in the second half of November, when the maximum price for in-shell nuts was 35 lei/kg ($ 2.02 / kg), and for light halves of nut kernels – 100 lei/kg ($ 5.78 / kg).

Representatives of the Union of Associations of Moldova Walnut Crops Producers believe that the increase in prices was three main reasons. The first and foremost is the traditional increase in market activity before the Catholic Christmas. The second reason is the reduction in walnuts’ stocks, which the largest exporting traders formed during intensive purchases of these products in the second half of October – the first half of November. At the same time, the supply of products in December is not large. This year, large walnut farms have collected low harvest, but the quality of the products is relatively high (during the harvesting period, there was no rain and no increased risk of kernels darkening). Consequently, in agricultural enterprises with good storage facilities, a sufficiently high-quality nut can be stored without a significant decrease in quality until spring.

The third reason for the increase in prices for export walnuts is the national currency’s devaluation. The bulk of Moldovan walnuts are exported to the European Union, and transactions are made in euros. At the same time, in December, the euro in the country increased against the Moldovan leu. As a result, against the weak supply of products and high inflationary expectations, walnut suppliers are forced to raise purchase prices for export-quality products.

Сообщение Prices for high-quality walnuts go up before winter holidays in Moldova появились сначала на EastFruit.