Poland is one of the largest producers of fruit and vegetables in the EU. For both categories, Spain and Italy are the two main producers. In vegetables, Poland ranks second only to France, ahead of the Netherlands. In fruit, Poland is third after the two leaders, Italy and Spain. However, Polish vegetable production has been somewhat smaller in recent years compared to the past. In 2023 and 2024, around 5.4 million tonnes of vegetables were harvested. The fruit harvest in 2024, at 4.3 million tonnes, was considerably smaller than in previous years. In 2022, 5.4 million tonnes of fruit were harvested.
Net importer
In terms of fresh fruit and vegetables, Poland is a net importer, both for fresh vegetables and fresh fruit. Total imports reached almost 2.8 million tonnes in 2024, worth €3.5 billion. Exports were slightly lower than before, at 1.9 million tonnes last year, but the value of exports rose sharply to €1.1 billion. Imports of fresh vegetables grew to more than one million tonnes in 2024, up from 570,000 tonnes in 2017 and 10% more than in 2023. Fresh vegetable exports have remained between 0.8 and 0.9 million tonnes over the last three years. Imports of fresh fruit have been fairly stable over the years, at 1.75 million tonnes last year. Fresh fruit exports were relatively small in 2024 at 1.06 million tonnes, down from 1.3 million tonnes a few years ago.
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Poland: Import and export fresh fruit and vegetables
Tomatoes biggest vegetable product
Among fresh vegetables, tomatoes are the most important crop in Poland. In 2024, over 930,000 tonnes of tomatoes were grown for the fresh market, more than 10% higher than the previous year. In 2016, tomato production was just over 600,000 tonnes. The vast majority are grown under glass, with open-field tomato production at around 100,000 tonnes annually. Other major vegetable crops are onions, cabbage, carrots, followed by cucumbers, pumpkins, peppers, and mushrooms. Mushroom production in 2024 was 247,000 tonnes, according to Eurostat, slightly higher than in 2023 but lower than in 2020 and 2021.
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In fruit, apples are dominant
Apples dominate Polish fruit production. In 2024, production of apples for direct consumption was just under 2 million tonnes, compared with over 2.6 million tonnes in 2022. The harvest of industrial apples in 2024 was slightly smaller than in both previous years, at over 1.4 million tonnes. By a wide margin, strawberries are the next largest fruit crop, with 173,000 tonnes harvested in 2024, down from over 190,000 tonnes in each of the two previous years. They are followed by sour cherries (110,000 tonnes), plums (95,000 tonnes), raspberries (77,000 tonnes), pears (74,000 tonnes), blackcurrants (68,000 tonnes), blueberries (62,000 tonnes), sweet cherries (51,000 tonnes), and redcurrants (32,000 tonnes). For all these crops, the 2024 harvest was smaller than in earlier years.
Most from/via the Netherlands
Poland imports a large share of its fresh fruit and vegetables from or via the Netherlands. In 2024, imports from or via the Netherlands reached 700,000 tonnes—more than in 2023 but less than in 2022. Three products had import volumes exceeding 100,000 tonnes in 2024: onions, bananas, and tomatoes. Next, at 20,000–30,000 tonnes each, were grapes, oranges, carrots, avocados, and pears. Products with just under 20,000 tonnes included peppers, lemons, mandarins, and watermelons.
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Import volumes from the Netherlands vary from year to year, especially for onions. In 2022, onion imports from the Netherlands reached 175,000 tonnes, while banana imports exceeded 140,000 tonnes. Imports of tomatoes have continued to grow, especially in the last year. Spain and Germany are the other main suppliers of fresh fruit and vegetables to Poland. Overall, bananas are Poland's most important import, followed by tomatoes, watermelons, onions, mandarins, oranges, lemons, and grapes.
In exports, apples the largest, followed by mushrooms
Apples are Poland's most important fresh fruit and vegetable export. In 2024, 755,000 tonnes were sold abroad, most going to EU countries, with Germany and the Netherlands as the main buyers. Exports to non-EU countries have dropped sharply, from 425,000 tonnes in 2021 to 280,000 tonnes in 2024. Outside the EU, Egypt, Kazakhstan, and India were the main buyers last year. Mushrooms are the second-largest export product, with 245,000 tonnes exported in 2024, the same as in the previous two years. Germany and the UK are the main buyers of Polish mushrooms, followed by France. Other major exports include onions, pears, tomatoes, and cabbage.
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For more information:
Jan Kees Boon
Fruit and Vegetable Facts
www.fruitandvegetablefacts.com
[email protected]