In January-May 2021, Azerbaijan ranked 9th in the list of the main consumers of Russian honey, Report informs referring to the Siberian News Agency.
During this period, 23 tons of honey were supplied from Russia to Azerbaijan, which is 432 percent more than the indicator for the five months of 2020.
In January-May, Russia exported 1,443 tons of honey (a twofold increase over the year), and the number of destinations increased from 17 to 31.
The primary consumers of Russian honey were the countries of the former USSR, whose share in the total export volume increased from 41 percent to 53 percent, and the supplies rose by 159 percent, to 755 tons.
The primary consumers of honey from Russia in the reporting period were Kazakhstan (364 tons, an increase of 123 percent), China (323 tons, an increase of 6 percent), and Belarus (248 tons, an increase of 106 percent).
“In the former Soviet republics, the death of bees has been observed for several years, which strikes a blow not only on the volume of honey produced but also on its varieties. The historical similarity of taste preferences with Russian consumers and low-cost logistics, due to the geographical proximity, make Russian honey the most attractive in terms of imports. Russia can also offer well-known and popular regional brands of honey, which are not available in these countries,” said Andrey Dalnov, head of the Center for Industry Expertise of the Russian Agricultural Bank.
The prerequisites for the increase in honey exports from Russia in new directions were the depreciation of the ruble and the disruption in the hiring of seasonal workers due to anticoronavirus restrictions in several countries, which led to a decrease in domestic honey production.
Thus, the EU showed the highest growth rates of imports of Russian honey, which increased its share in the export of Russian honey from 2 percent to 15 percent per year. This was primarily the result of the start of exports to Poland (141 tons) and Germany (21 tons). A substantial increase was noted in the Czech Republic (+153 percent to 42 tons). Three countries are among ten honey importers from Russia.
“In the case of the EU, the factors for increasing supplies were the active use of honey instead of sugar and the trend towards healthy eating. These factors were reinforced by the perception of honey as a natural remedy. Particularly promising is the entry into the German market - this is the largest European honey importer. The average consumption of honey in Germany per year is about 1 kilogram, and the country lacks its production capacities. Therefore, deliveries from Russia are needed not only to expand the varieties of honey but also to meet the demand in general,” said Andrey Dalnov.