Sea-buckthorn (hippophae), a new niche berry fore Ukrainian producers 

Growing sea-buckthorn is a new trend for Ukrainian farmers, informed Dmitriy Kroshka, head of Ukrsadprom Association. “Although the berry is known by consumers, its industrial production has started a couple of years ago,” he said. “Ukrainian agrarians are rather flexible, they observe new trends and start to cultivate new crops. Such was the case with blueberry in 2016, then of sour cherry in 2017, then of chokeberry, and now the farmers got interested into the sea buckthorn. 

For the first time, France became the largest export market for Ukrainian fruit, berries and nuts, reported the analytics of EastFruit agency. The volume of shipments has grown by 9% comparing to 2019, and amounted to $12.2 million. The basic commodities are walnut (+19% comparing to 2019), frozen wild blueberry and frozen raspberry.

© Fruit-Inform Agency

On September 17, Fruit-Inform Agency (Ukraine) will hold an international Zoom webinar on the highbush blueberry market in Eastern Europe. The event will be in English and combine blueberry production and trade experience from both Western and Eastern Europe.

© Nature Green

Nature Green has recently established in Ukraine, in order to grow organic Shiitake mushrooms. “From the beginning, we have been focused on the production of premium quality organic mushrooms,” said Peter Sutherland, Sales Manager.

“We make our own first-class substrate in house to keep a consistent high-quality harvest, to do this we use the best organic raw materials, advanced techniques and cutting-edge equipment in our facility.” The production is certified with Organic Standards & Global Gap, ISO 22000:2005 and 9001:2015.

More and more European distributors of berries pay attention to honeysuckle. “This year, Ukrainian growers for the first time launch to the market the tastiest varieties of honeysuckle; we are sure, all over the world the consumers will like them,” states Alexander Yareschenko, PhD for agrarian sciences, deputy director of Ukrainian horticulture Institute. The participants of the largest berry conference “Ukrainian Berries-2019, fresh and frozen” will discuss the potential of honeysuckle too.

Ukraine’s agricultural export market was worth a record USD 18.8 billion in 2018 and this growth trend has continued into the current year.

 Agrarian Ministry officials have reported a 24.4% year-on-year increase in agricultural exports during January-February 2019, representing a new total for the two-month period of USD 3.5 billion.

Ukraine's most important berry business event moves to Dnipro, one of the most important business, industrial and agricultural centers of Ukraine.

By tradition, the conference will be organized in a two-day format: May 24 for conference sessions and May 25 for the practical business-tour to Agrosilprom, one of the leading berry farms in the region.

Fruit-Inform announces the start of registration for the 8th International Conference “Berries of Ukraine-2017: Frozen Produce & Fresh Market”.

The event has again changed its hosting city and is to be held in Zaporizhia offering new opportunities and participants’ geography. In addition to berries, the region of Zaporizhia is known for successful production of different berry crops in Ukraine as well as cherries, which will be an additional focus of the event.

Founded in 1992 in Odessa (southern Ukraine), Tavria V started out selling food in kiosks but in 1998 opened its first supermarkets.

“Tavria V is a multi-format retailer,” said Elena Seyrik, director of its import department. “We operate via 70 stores: hypermarkets, supermarkets, convenience stores and delicatessen supermarkets. Our shops are located in central and southern Ukraine.”

In addition, Tavria V was the first retailer in the region to begin e-commerce, opening its internet shop under the same brand.