Russia is a great importer of all sorts of fruit and vegetables from many countries, including Europe, South Africa, Israel or China. The former is a great source of business, and as a result, Russian importers fear the effects of the possible sanctions that may close the Russian borders to European products, although they are also optimistic and hope the situation will not escalate.
Asif Jafarov, of Akhmed Fruit Company, explains that at the moment “numerous products are imported from Europe, so a ban would cause a great disturbance,” but he believes that it will all be fine by September, perhaps even by mid-August.
For her part, Larissa Khachikyan, of the Russian company Friend Fruits, explains that “the summer campaign is a period of low imports, but we continue to work with suppliers with whom we have collaborated for years and the situation is fine. Right now, for example, we are working with exporters from Italy, Spain, France and South Africa. The country we work with depends on the season.” Overall, Europe accounts for around 50% of the company’s imports.
Larissa affirms that even though there are some rumours about Chile being currently afraid to work with Russia, her firm relies on both its long-term business relationships and its reputation to overcome any hurdles that may come.
