Birch trees are planted: will it be possible to grow your own bananas in Russia

The construction of the first greenhouses for bananas has begun in Russia, the Ministry of Agriculture reported. Experts point out that there is certainly a potential for the production of the popular fruit in Russia. Experiments on growing a wide variety of "exotics" are already underway. Izvestia found out how many bananas are eaten in Russia, whether it is profitable to grow them at home, and how much they can cost.

Actively importing

In 2024, bananas accounted for 27% of the total volume of fruit imports to Russia. About $1.5 billion worth of them are imported per year. In 2024, Russia imported about 1.4 million tons of bananas, with Ecuador as the main supplier. According to the results of the first half of 2025, the total volume of banana shipments from this country to the Russian market increased by a quarter in physical terms compared to the same period in 2024.

The growing volume of banana imports is understandable: in Russia, consumption has increased significantly over the past three decades. Currently, every Russian consumes an average of about 10 kilograms of bananas per year.

The first harvests of this berry are also planned to be harvested in Russia: pilot projects for banana cultivation have been launched in the southern regions.

15 hectares of greenhouses are being built in Nevinnomyssk (Stavropol Territory). The total investment in the project is about 1.4 billion rubles. In addition to bananas, part of the greenhouse facilities in the region will be used for growing avocados, mangoes and passion fruit.

In August 2025, a banana and papaya plantation was established in Sochi. Experimental planting of tropical fruit species was carried out on the territory of the farm "100 hectares". The first harvest is expected there in the winter of 2025-2026.

The plantation will be monitored by an artificial intelligence-based climate management system.

The launch of industrial banana production in the south of Russia will be advisable subject to state support and technology development. In this case, banana cultivation may turn out to be a promising business, notes Dinara Vasbieva, associate professor at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation.

Technology development

Climate warming and the development of modern technologies are inexorably shifting the boundaries of what is possible in agriculture to the north, and have reached the Russian agro-industrial complex, says Dmitry Morkovkin, a leading researcher at the Institute for International Economic Relations Research, associate professor at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation.

Therefore, as business communicator Iya Kim emphasizes, it is quite advisable to try to grow new crops in Russia and adapt them to the climate. However, according to her, it is necessary to find a balance in order to eventually get a product that is adequate in price, the cost of production of which will not exceed, for example, the cost of imports.

This, according to observers, is quite possible if we focus on innovation, technological resources, and government support, which farmers actively receive. The latter is especially relevant given that bananas have been included in the list of agricultural products of the Russian Federation since 2025.

Low profitability

Nevertheless, most experts are inclined to believe that it is difficult to consider greenhouse banana production as a commercial project in the foreseeable future. The project, apparently, will be quite expensive and low-margin.

The production of greenhouse bananas is a laborious process. Bananas have a long period of fruit formation, the medium should be moist and warm, explains Marina Anokhina, Associate Professor of the Basic Department of Innovation and Industrial Policy Management at Plekhanov Russian University of Economics

— The agrotechnological process requires intensive lighting for at least 12 hours a day. In addition, the height of the banana is up to two and a half meters, which implies considerable costs for technical solutions of greenhouse structures and their maintenance. And if we take into account fairly large initial investments in technical, technological, and infrastructural support for the project, then its payback period will be more than 40 years," she notes.

In stores, imported bananas cost 110-150 rubles per kg. Our greenhouses will definitely be more expensive: taking into account all costs, experts do not exclude all 800-900 rubles per kilo.

Banana Country

The Ministry of Agriculture also pointed out that the project still has questionable economic feasibility. While it is really cheaper to import bananas than to try to grow them yourself, Oksana Lut clarified.

It is one of the cheapest and most common fruits on the world market, and its delivery is also relatively inexpensive and technologically advanced. Therefore, greenhouses will not be able to compete with tropical bananas on the shelves yet, says Denis Ternovsky, a leading researcher at the Center for Agri-food Policy at the Presidential Academy.

Khadzhimurad Belkharoev, an associate professor at the RUDN University Institute of World Economy and Business, is also confident that investments in such projects will almost "never pay off." First of all, according to him, the climate is not suitable at all. In addition to energy resources, you will have to spend a lot of water, and in Stavropol, water is in short supply: Kalmykia is practically dry nearby, and water resources are extremely limited.

And, according to him, there is not enough space: if we want to grow one and a half million tons of bananas per year, we will have to cover the entire south of Russia with greenhouses. But even in this case, over time, these greenhouses will be used for growing other crops, Belkharoev believes.

As the economist reminds, similar pilot projects are being implemented in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, with more suitable natural and climatic conditions for banana cultivation, but even there this experience cannot be expanded on a full scale.

Food security

Nevertheless, experts are sure it's worth a try. The development of such projects testifies to the high capacity of domestic agriculture, the willingness of the state to provide further support to farmers in promising industries, and the development of modern agricultural technologies that allow them to grow almost anything.

Real initiatives to grow bananas, create pistachio and almond orchards in general may indicate a prosperous situation in domestic agriculture, Marina Anokhina, Associate Professor of the Basic Department of Innovation and Industrial Policy Management at Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, draws attention.

The problems with food security have been practically solved, so the cultivation of exotic crops fits well into projects to develop the country's agricultural potential, the economist points out.

In addition, as Denis Ternovsky emphasizes, such developments are absolutely necessary in order to have a plan B in case of disruptions in global production due to climate, diseases or other factors.