Sweet and sour cherry production in Poland is expected to increase

In 2016 total sweet and sour cherry production in Poland is expected to increase in comparison with 2015 by 3.1 percent. Total production of cherries (tart and sweet) is forecast at 235,000 Metric Tons (MT). The total number consists of 185,000 MT sour cherries and 50,000 MT sweet cherries. In 2016 cherry orchard acreage diminished by 1.5 percent in comparison with 2015 and amounted to 38,500 hectares

Cherries

Production and acreage

In 2016 total sweet and sour cherry production in Poland is expected to increase in comparison with 2015 by 3.1 percent. Total production of cherries (tart and sweet) is forecast at 235,000 Metric Tons (MT). The total number consists of 185,000 MT sour cherries and 50,000 MT sweet cherries. In 2016 cherry orchard acreage diminished by 1.5 percent in comparison with 2015 and amounted to 38,500 hectares.

Winter 2015/16 was another mild winter in Poland. There were no winter losses in the number of cherry trees. Cherry plantations came into the 2016 season in very good shape.

The area planted diminished as some farmers gave up unprofitable production. 2016 is the second consecutive year of very low farm gate prices for cherries in Poland. Cherry growers suffer from lack of capital for investments, mostly for necessary irrigation. The cherry crop 2016 is high but the quality of fruit is diverse. Especially fruit other than dessert are of small size. The main problem for cherry growers is insufficient soil moisture that weakens cherry tree immunity against pests. Due to the low production profitability many of orchards were not protected well against pests and diseases. In 2016 cherry farm gate prices did not cover production so some growers gave up the crop harvest.

Consumption

 Sweet cherries are a seasonal fruit consumed fresh and unprocessed. Fresh domestic consumption of cherries averages 0.8-1.0 kg per person and is increasing. Sour cherries are utilized principally by the processing industry. The main sour cherry products are: frozen fruits, juice concentrates, jams and marmalade. Over 50 percent of industrial sour cherry consumption is frozen, with almost 80 percent of frozen cherry products directed to foreign markets.

Trade

 Poland’s 2015 (January-December) total exports of fresh dessert cherries were higher than in 2014 by 43 percent. In 2015 fresh sweet and sour cherries fruit exports (including EU-28 trade) amounted to 17,580 MT, valued at US $13.1 million. The increase of export volume did not translate into an increase of income. In 2015 the value of total cherry exports diminished by 7 percent in comparison with 2014. Export destinations changed for Polish cherry exporters for the last two years. Polish producers and exporters have been strongly hit by the Russian ban on food imports imposed on the EU in August 2014. Until 2014 Russia was the main cherry export market for both tart and sweet cherries capturing 60 percent of Poland’s total cherry exports. In calendar year 2015 the main destination of export sales are EU member states, which source fruit for processing. Germany is the main export destination for sour cherries, capturing 45 percent of Poland’s sour cherries external sales. For sweet cherries Belarus partly replaced Russian demand. Strong competition from markets like Turkey, Serbia and Hungary diminished Polish sour cherry export prices. In in the first half of 2015 average cherry export prices, lower than for the same time of the previous year, affected the Polish cherry industry’s diminishing profitability of production for both processors and farmers. In the second half of 2015 export prices increased for processors and exporters but the increase was not reflected to the same extent in farm gate prices.

For 2016 calendar year it is forecast that Poland’s sour and sweet cherry exports will exceed 2015 level by 6 percent. After Russian export ban sweet cherry export volume need switch in sales destinations.

The 2015 year was a good year for Poland’s freezing industry and exporters as global demand for cherries exceeded available supply. Greater demand for frozen cherries by the United States contributed to this to some extent. In 2015 frozen cherry exports reached 133,000 MT, valued at U.S.$ 162.5 million. Traditionally Germany consumed one third of all frozen cherries exported by Poland. U.S. imports of frozen cherries from Poland were valued at U.S.$ 0.9 million in 2015.

Peaches and Nectarines

Production and acreage

In 2016 production of peaches is forecast at 9,600 MT, 3 percent lower than for the last year. In 2015-16 peach orchard area diminished to 2,500 hectares, from 2,700 in the 2014; a decrease of 7.4 percent. The biggest peach orchard in Lower Silesia region in Poland was taken out of production in 2015. The orchard owners’ interest in peach cultivation diminished in Poland last year. Another consecutive year of low prices for peaches made some growers switch to other fruit production.

The decline in production is expected to be much smaller than the decline in crop area due to very favorable weather conditions during this year’s vegetation season. Winter 2015/16 was very mild and there were no losses in the number of peach trees. In January 2016 frost without snow cover caused only some local damage in very young plantings without consequences for the overall crop output. The main problem for Polish peach growers is a constant lack of enough soil moisture and lack of capital for investments in orchards’ irrigation.

Consumption

Domestic consumption of peaches and nectarines is very irregular due to the strong influence by the import price of those fruits.

Trade

Poland is a net importer of peaches. In 2015 (January-December) Poland imported over 110,000 MT, 90 percent sourced from other EU member states, mostly from Spain and Italy. For 2016 imports of peaches will stay in line with last year’s results. Exports of local peach varieties are destined for Belarus and Ukraine. In 2015 calendar year Poland’s peach exports are estimated at 20,000 MT.

Policy

In Poland cultivation of peaches, plums, and cherries is not subsidized. The Minister of Agriculture provides fruit growers, including stone fruit producers, with support to strengthen their marketing power through the creation of producer groups. In June 2016 Poland had on record 237 groups and 67 organizations of fruit and vegetable producers operating in the market. Those entities had almost 7,000 members who registered about 25 percent of the country’s fruit and vegetable sales by value. The level of horizontal integration among fruit growers in Poland is still low and is recognized as one of the main reasons for the instability of the fruit market.

Poland’s Stone Fruits Production, MT

Source: Polish Office of Statistics, 2015 f – Forecast, FAS/Warsaw

Poland’s Stone Fruits Area, HA

Source: Polish Office of Statistics, 2015

f – Forecast, Institute of Agricultural Food Economics

Poland’s Stone Fruits Exports, MT

Source: Global Trade Atlas f – Forecast, FAS/Warsaw

Poland’s Stone Fruits Imports, MT

Source: Global Trade Atlas f – Forecast, FAS/Warsaw

Poland’s top export destinations for sour cherries fresh, MT

Source: Global Trade Atlas

Poland’s top export destinations for sour cherries fresh, U.S. $

Source: Global Trade Atlas

Poland’s top export destinations for sweet cherries fresh, MT

Source: Global Trade Atlas

Poland’s top export destinations for sweet cherries fresh,  U.S. $

Source: Global Trade Atlas

Poland’s top export destinations for sour cherries frozen, MT

Source: Global Trade Atlas

Information sources:

1. Polish Office of Statistics, Yearbook 2015
2. Global Trade Atlas, Eurostat
3. Institute of Agriculture and Food Economics in Warsaw

source: USDA