Moscow welcomes The Fourth International Conference “Fruit & Vegetable Business of Russia – 2011”

Domestic and foreign producers as well as the companies specializing in trade in fresh and processed fruits and vegetables were the backbone of the conference participants.

The conference was opened by Mrs. Tetiana Getman, Head of Fruit-Inform Project: “Thanks to huge market capacity, the Russian Federation is the key partner in the fresh produce business for many countries throughout the world”. The expert also noted that internal production of fresh and processed fruits and vegetables is of strategic priority in development of Russia's agricultural sector.

In her conference speech, Mrs. Natalya Rogova, President of Association of Greenhouses of Russia, gave an overall assessment of the present situation in Russia's greenhouse business and made a forecast of major trends expected in development of the greenhouse vegetable market in the short and long terms.

Main development aspects of the Russian market for fresh and processed potatoes were covered by the conference speech of Mr. Dmitriy Rylko, General Director of IKAR.

Much attention was given to the specificity of Russian companies' activities with the foreign suppliers of fresh fruits and vegetables. The conference speech of Mr. Aleksandr Isayev, Deputy Director of Phytosanitary Control Department of Rospotrebnadzor (Federal Service on Customers' Rights Protection and Human Well-Being Surveillance of the Russian Federation), was highly appreciated by the conference attendees. Mr. Isayev presented a detailed report on Rospotrebnadzor's work with fresh produce suppliers from overseas countries in the season 2011/12.

How to export fruits and vegetables to Russia without any problems? This question was answered by Mr. Artur Stasiak, Director of Silvi Cola, the Polish company which has been exporting fruits and vegetables from Poland to the EU and CIS countries for many years.

The conference agenda afforded also an ample opportunity for the fresh produce sector experts to share their vision of the efficient cooperation between suppliers of fruits and vegetables and Russia's retail chains, bring up a question of necessity of distribution centers establishment and present modern solutions in storage and post-harvesting fields which are one of the most important conditions of efficient work in the fresh produce market, especially during the period of overproduction.

In such a way, the conference participants received an excellent opportunity to listen to several experts' opinions on the trends to be most probable in the Russian fresh produce market in the following season and nearest 10 years, and familiarize themselves with a number of examples of the domestic fresh produce production and trade business development under conditions of hard competition from the side of imports.

After the end of the conference, all attendees and World Food Moscow exhibitors continued their communication at the restaurant of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel, which presented rich entertainments for its guests.

Fruit-Inform Project expresses profound gratitude to all conference participants for business-friendly atmosphere at the event, interesting presentations and questions to them.

Those companies which for some reason were not able to take part in the conference can receive the conference presentations and participants' contacts by filling out an application form for distance participation.

We would also remind you that the next meeting of the fresh produce specialists from the CIS countries will be held at the Eighth International Conference “Fruits & Vegetables of Ukraine – 2011. New Exporter”. This event will take place at IEC, the most up-to-date exhibition center of Ukraine in Kiev, in conjunction with Fresh Produce Ukraine 2011 Fair, November 30 – December 2, 2011.