Bulgaria: Fruit and Vegetable Imports Continue to Increase

According to the Bulgarian Ministry of Agriculture, the country's fruit and vegetable imports in 2018 increased by 2,000 and 20,000 tons, respectively. This growth is due to a reduction in the production of domestic vegetables and fruits.

Today, it is more profitable for Bulgarians to buy these products abroad, where they are cheaper. This is said to be mostly due to the lack of subsidies to Bulgarian agricultural producers.

According to experts, if the decline in the production of domestic vegetables and fruits continues at the same rate, these will completely disappear from the shelves of Bulgarian stores within the next 10-15 years, and consumers often complain about the poor quality and taste of those imports.

At the moment, when buying tomatoes in Bulgaria, they are very likely to have been brought from Poland, Italy, Greece and Macedonia. Meanwhile, apples in Bulgarian stores mostly come from Macedonia, Serbia and Greece.