Moldovan berries producers interested in extending sales market

Chisinau, 27 February /MOLDPRES/ - The market opportunities of the berries sector and their turning to good account were discussed at the fourth issue of the national conference of the sector of producing and processing of berries, held in Chisinau today. The event brought together about 100 participants – producers, distributors, national and international experts in marketing technologies, including post-harvest ones.   

The participants in the conference exchanged opinions on the local market, adoption of modern and efficient production technologies, in order to get qualitative goods, as well as quantitative results.  

„The berries sector is one with potential and is worth being turned to account. Most producers are young people and women who are set to develop profitable and sustainable businesses; therefore, we rely on the support of the development partners and decision-makers,’’ the head of the Berries of Moldova Association, Aneta Ganenco, has said.     

For his part, a representative of the Agriculture, Regional Development and Environment Ministry, (MADRM), Iurie Mudrea, said that the berries sector had recorded a quick growth in the last years. ‘’Starting from 2013 till present, the areas cultivated with berries have increased four-fold and the overall harvest increased by more than ten times,’’ Mudrea noted.      

The event, held by the Berries of Moldova Association, with the support of the High Value Agriculture Activity in Moldova project of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), ended with a communication session between cultivators of berries, suppliers of resources, representatives of commercial networks and buyers, business support organizations and financing institutions. The conference adopted a resolution appealing to all berries producers, in order to consolidate the volumes of production, jointly adopt the newest agricultural technologies and practices of production and post-harvest; identify new sales markets and maintain a constructive dialogue with decision-makers’ representatives.       

At present, about 4.1 thousand hectares of plantations of berries are registered in Moldova, from which 15.5 thousand of tons of products were harvested in 2019. In 2018, the export of berries increased by 36 per cent against 2016 and stood at about 3,000 tons. The biggest consumers of berries from the European Union are Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Belgium.