Poland is the largest producer of currants in the EU and the second, after Russia, in the world, the Analysis and Strategy Office of the National Center for Agricultural Support (KOWR) said.
Although these fruits are known for their health-promoting qualities, they are not as popular as, for example, raspberries, which is reflected in the price. Fresh blackcurrants are also less well known in other countries, and are thus used mainly in processed form.
According to KOWR, the popularity of currants production in Poland results from the demand from the processing industry, as well as their taste and health properties.
Experts estimate that about 90 percent of the harvest volume is allocated to the domestic processing industry.
Blackcurrants are exported to foreign markets primarily in frozen form. In 2018, 45,000 tons of frozen blackcurrants were exported, which accounted for 36 percent of domestic production volume. Foreign recipients of frozen black currants were mainly: Belarus, Germany, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.
The export volume of fresh blackcurrants was much smaller (2,500 tons) and was mainly exported to the German, Belarusian and Austrian market.
Currants belong to the most commonly grown berries in Poland. The area of their cultivation is relatively stable and in the last five years has covered around 43-44,000 hectares, while the share of blackcurrant plantations decreases, and the share of varieties of currants increases.
In recent years, blackcurrant harvests have ranged from 100,000 tons in the less fertile 2017 - up to 131,000 tonnes in 2016. Last year, 126 thousand of these fruits were harvested. This year, the weather during the growing season was unfavorable, which significantly affected the fruit yield. According to the estimates of the Institute of Agricultural and Food Economics, blackcurrant harvests could be over 20 percent lower than last year.
The smaller supply of currants from this year's harvest "puts pressure on an increase in purchase prices," emphasize KOWR analysts.
Source: www.sadyogrody.pl