The increase in apple production this year compared with previous years has not been accompanied by satisfactory income for farmers in Macedonia. Growers are facing very low purchase prices, high production costs and major difficulties in finding a market.
Amet Ismaili, who has been growing apples for years in Sellarcë, Tetova, explains that the quantity produced in the country exceeds consumption needs. According to him, warmer temperatures during the summer and the absence of crop failures have made this the highest-quality year, with more abundant production than in previous years.
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Ismaili emphasizes that marketing in Macedonia becomes more difficult when production is high and apples are not exported. Surplus supply automatically drives prices down, to the point that sales do not cover production costs at the prices currently being offered.
Another obstacle, according to the grower, is the lack of storage facilities for preserving apples. He calls on the state, specifically the Ministry of Agriculture, to increase investment in storage space and the packaging of produce, as the country needs them.
Without wholesale purchases, large quantities of apples end up rotting. This situation, together with the low purchase price, is causing most growers to abandon apple cultivation. /Alsat.mk
