nCa Report
Babur, the founder of the Mughal dynasty in India, writes thrice in his biography that he misses nothing from his native land except melons.
Central Asia is on its way to become a major supplier of fruit and vegetables to the world. It will not only help bolster the global food security but also serve as a strong source of revenues for the region.
For instance, let us look at the recent data from the state statistics agency of Uzbekistan, as reported by upl.uz.
In the period from January to August 2024, the export of fruits and vegetables from Uzbekistan reached record levels. The country supplied 1.3 million tons of products worth 922.8 million US dollars to the world market, which is 9%, or 111.9 thousand tons more in volume and 20.8% more in monetary terms compared to the same period last year.
The main buyers of Uzbek fruits and vegetables are Russia (44.1%), Pakistan (15.2%), Kazakhstan (14.6%) and Afghanistan (6.6%). However, in recent years the geography of exports has expanded significantly. Uzbek products are increasingly appearing on store shelves in Europe, the Middle East and South Asia.
Geography of fruit and vegetable exports (January-August 2024):
- Russia — 544.9 thousand tons, 407.0 million dollars, 44.1% share;
- Pakistan – 98.0 thousand tons, 140.3 million dollars, 15.2% share;
- Kazakhstan — 406.8 thousand tons, 135.0 million dollars, 14.6% share;
- Afghanistan – 40.2 thousand tons, 60.8 million dollars, 6.6% share;
- Kyrgyzstan – 112.4 thousand tons, 40.0 million dollars, 4.3% share;
- China – 47.5 thousand tons, 38.1 million dollars, 4.1% share;
- Türkiye – 12.8 thousand tons, 22.9 million dollars, 2.5% share;
- Azerbaijan – 6.1 thousand tons, 9.9 million dollars, 1.1% share;
- Belarus – 12.7 thousand tons, 9.8 million dollars, 1.1% share;
- Iraq – 14.4 thousand tons, 6.9 million dollars, 0.7% share;
- Georgia – 7.0 thousand tons, 6.4 million dollars, 0.7% share;
- Ukraine – 7.9 thousand tons, 6.1 million dollars, 0.7% share;
- Iran – 5.0 thousand tons, 5.1 million dollars, 0.6% share;
- UAE – 10.2 thousand tons, 4.7 million dollars, 0.5% share;
- Germany – 2.7 thousand tons, 4.1 million dollars, 0.4% share;
- other countries – 30.2 thousand tons, 25.7 million dollars, 2.8% share. /// nCa, 2 October 2024 (image credit heart.org)