ACORT told about the volume of banana consumption in Russia and the cost of the fruit

Russians eat about 1.4 million tons of bananas annually. The key supplier is Ecuador, which accounts for more than 95% of supplies in physical and value terms, Igor Karavaev, chairman of the presidium of the Association of Retail Trade Companies (ACORT), told Izvestia.

"Additional sources of supply may be India, Costa Rica, Tanzania or China, but it is the Cavendish banana variety produced in Ecuador that is characterized not only by high quality, but also by a long shelf life and good resistance to prolonged transportation. The shelf life of Ecuadorian bananas is 50-60 days, while for varieties from other countries it usually does not exceed 30 days," he added.

ACORT specified that if the Russian Federation plans to grow bananas independently, it will take years due to climatic conditions, and the volume of this product on the market will in any case be niche, comparable to the share of Russian citrus fruits, which account for about 1% of the market.

According to Rosstat data, the average retail price of bananas is currently 167.5 rubles per 1 kg, in large retail chains the price of 1 kg starts from 114.99 rubles, ACORT added. It explained that over the past two years, the price of bananas has been significantly affected by changes in the exchange rate, rising logistics costs, as well as domestic political events in Ecuador in 2024. The cost of this fruit has significantly approached the price of apples, pears and citrus fruits, which leads to a redistribution of Russian consumers' demand.

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Earlier, on January 24, Director General of the Association for the Development of Subtropical Agriculture Andrei Platonov at the final forum "Development of small agribusiness in Russia" said that the first bananas grown in the Russian Federation may be introduced by the end of 2025.

Before that, on November 26, 2024, the head of the Ministry of Agriculture Oksana Lut said that bananas can be grown in Russia, but it is not economically profitable yet. She also added that this issue is periodically discussed in the ministry.