The announced extension of the Russian boycott was no surprise for Inge Ribbens, responsible for the market access dossiers within GroentenFruit Huis. "There was already a lot of speculation in the media about the extension of the European sanctions, which is why exporters already indicated that an extension of the Russian boycott was to be expected. So the message didn't come as a surprise, but it was definitely disappointing."
"The consequences of the Russian boycott are still big in the day-to-day practice of the Dutch fruit and veg trade. The first half of 2015, the Dutch export value of fruit and vegetables appears to be developing positively, but this is certainly no compensation for the loss of the Russian market. The impression could be that many new sales channels have been developed. Recently, external factors such as the lower production due to the cold spring and the exchange rate of the British pound, have played a big part, however. For instance, the cold spring caused lower production and better prices of greenhouse vegetables," Inge says.
"The specialized Russia exporters saw 40-50% of their sales disappear, being forced to fire quite a few people. Such a blow isn't easy to absorb. Of course we're looking at other markets, in Europe and beyond. For instance, Brazil was a big market for Dutch onions this year, mainly a direct consequence of the small local harvest and flooding in regular supplier Argentina. We are also working hard on market dossiers in ten countries, and we're hoping for market access of bell peppers to China, and apples and pears to India," Inge says.
Although re-export from countries outside Europe to Russia is permitted, this type of trade was also hit hard. "This re-export will continue, but not in the same amounts as other years anymore. We simply lack the well-known mix loads of Dutch produce combined with imported produce," says Inge. "Stricter demands on documentation of the country of origin add more administrative pressure and raise costs."
In 2013, the export to Russia amounted to 600 million Euro, with a share in export of 8 percent. After the first half year in 2014 went well, the total export didn't exceed 495 million Euro due to the import stop in August, with the negative consequences for the companies with export interests in Russia still continuing. Within Europe, we're seeing that Italy and the United Kingdom have imported more Dutch fruit vegetables in the first half of 2015. Outside the EU, it's mainly Brazil and some African and South-east Asian countries. These countries mainly import a lot of Dutch onions. GroentenFruit Huis is working on an analysis, mapping the effects of the boycott, which will be published mid-July.
