The processing season is not yet over. Taking into account the continuing dynamics of raw material supplies to factories, a realistic forecast of processing into concentrate is about 260-280 thousand tons of apple harvested in 2025.
As noted in the Association of Fruit and Vegetable Processors Speranța Con, for the entire last season, the industry entities processed about 220 thousand tons of apple harvest-2024. According to statistical data, last year’s apple harvest in Moldova amounted to about 407 thousand tons. That is, in the structure of last year’s harvest, industrial apple accounted for about 54%.
In the current season the share of industrial apple will increase. This is partly caused by specific weather conditions – spring frosts, drought in the second half of summer and prolonged precipitation in the first half of fall, which led to a decrease in the quality of the apple crop. Objectively, most of it can hardly be sold quickly and profitably on the “fresh market”.
Besides, according to Boris Efimov, the General Director of Orhei Vit Company, the actual harvest-2025 of apples in Moldova will certainly be significantly higher than the forecasted (in summer, before the Prognosfruit conference) level. Most likely, this year the volume of commercial apple production in the country will be in the range of 400-450 thousand tons. That is, it will exceed the corresponding last year’s figure, possibly significantly.
A similar situation is observed in many countries of Central and Eastern Europe. In particular, by November the summer forecast of apple production in Poland – the leading European “apple power” – has been increased by more than 25% and currently exceeds 4 million tons.
As a consequence, the apple processing campaign is unfolding rapidly in the European part of the continent. A lot of apple concentrate will be produced and its price is dynamically decreasing. According to Boris Efimov, at the moment the largest buyers of apple concentrate in Europe have already contracted the necessary volumes of goods for the last quarter of the current year and the first quarter of the next year. In early November, the European apple concentrate market “froze”.
For a detailed assessment of the current situation and its development prospects on the industrial apple and concentrate market, please read the interview with Boris Efimov , General Director of Orhei Vit , in the Friday edition of Logos Press weekly.
