Moldova ranks sixth in the world in terms of volume of nuts' export

Chisinau, 24 October /MOLDPRES/ - The global nuts’ export market is of about 23.5 billion dollars and Moldova has 4.3 per cent of this market, annually exporting nuts worth from 100 to 200 million dollars, an economist, Veaceslav Ionita, has written on a social network.  

According to the economist, nuts play an important role in the exports of agricultural production from Moldova. Thus, their export is larger than the export of all fruits and stone fruits taken together.    

The biggest exporter of nuts in the world is the United States; the U.S.’ share in the overall exports of nuts is 39.5 per cent; the USA is followed by Mexico, with 22.5 per cent. Ukraine ranks fifth, with a share of 5.3 per cent.   

Official data by the National Statistics Bureau shows that, in 2017, the overall area of walnuts’ plantations was of 29,000 hectares in Moldova (including the forest-type walnut plantations, forest belts and alleys along roads). The annual harvest of walnuts amounts to 18,000-40,000 tons, depending on the climate conditions.   

Walnut producers have recently asked for subsidies from the state to create new plantations. “The costs for the creation of a walnut plantation differ. Thus, I think that the value of the subsidy must be 14,000 lei for 100-125 trees per one hectare, 20,000 lei for one hectare for 126-178 trees and 30,000 lei per one hectare for 178-358 trees. I think that this is only natural, as the expenses for foundation are different. The denser the plantation scheme is, the bigger the subsidies should be. At the same time, it is necessary that the producers switch to the nuts’ production in intensive system and plant new varieties. Often, producers found walnut orchards without taking into account whether the planted variety is productive or demanded on market and a good deal of the plantations provide less than half a ton for one hectare, being poorly productive varieties and old orchards,” the head of the Union of Associations of Nut Crops Producers, Oleg Tirsina, said.