In the period from 2014 to 2018, the annual volume of potato imports decreased by 11% from 874,6 thousand tons to 778,8 thousand tons. RBC writes about this with reference to the data from the Analysis of the Potato Market in Russia, prepared by BusinesStat.
The volume of imports is dominated by potatoes from Belarus and Egypt. At the same time, the dynamics of imports was multidirectional. In particular, the reduction in potato supplies was observed in 2015-2016, and the growth in 2017-2018. After the introduction of food barges in 2014, total potato deliveries to Russia decreased in 2015 and 2016 by 8,7% and 37,6% compared to the previous years, respectively.
The import of Egyptian potatoes to the Russian market was allowed on December 14, 2016. The next year, supplies from this region increased 2,5 times (compared to 2016) and reached 326,1 thousand tons. The increase in imports is primarily associated with a low crop in Russia and a lack of supply on the market. The total volume of deliveries in 2017 increased 1,7 times compared to the previous year, however, in 2018, the dynamics of the indicator again changed to a downward trend.
According to BusinesStat forecasts, in 2019-2023, Russian potato imports will continue to decline. In 2023, it will amount to 560,5 thousand tons (-28% to the volume of 2018).
Source: https://fruitnews.ru