Tomatoes are the most popular vegetable in Poland and Polish consumers eat tomatoes every day and probably cannot imagine that they could be missing in the store. Due to the climatic conditions in Poland, domestic tomato production is supplemented by tomatoes from abroad, which makes this vegetable available on store shelves all year round.
Tomato import to Poland
Polish and Dutch tomato production coincide on time, due to similar climatic conditions. However, when production in Poland dies down in winter, tomatoes from Morocco, Spain and Turkey appear on store shelves. Turkey produces tomatoes from December to April, so it is a good supplement to round off the tomato year for consumers. Especially since Turkish tomatoes are relatively cheap. (The price of a tomato from Turkey and Spain is PLN 6, while a Moroccan tomato is PLN 8).
Export of Polish tomatoes
Polish tomatoes are eagerly purchased by foreign buyers. Polish tomatoes are mainly sent to Germany, the Czech Republic, Ukraine, and Great Britain. The latter country is quite demanding because it has absolutely zero residues in its recommendations. And Poland manages to meet these requirements, which means good quality of the product offered. The last 2 years have also seen a lack of exports to Belarus, but the abandonment of this direction was offset by exports to other markets.
In 2023, tomato exports from Poland amounted to 80,000 tons per year. This price is constant and amounts to around PLN 3. Polish tomatoes compete mainly on price, when it is the lowest in the country.
Poland is the third largest tomato producer in Europe. Spain and the Netherlands are in the lead. However, due to consumer demand for this vegetable and the climatic conditions of the continent, EU production is increasingly being replaced by exports from third countries. The EU is no longer self-sufficient in tomato production. And in Poland, consumers want to buy tomatoes: consumption of this vegetable in Poland is above average compared to other EU countries.
Source: Agroberichten Buitenland