Apple prices in Europe have been notably higher during the current domestic season as a result of lower than usual production volumes, a new report has found.
According to analysis published by German group AMI, Europe only produced 1.44m tonnes of apples in 2012/13, while a subsequent increase in imports of the fruit from outside the EU was not sufficient to make up the shortfall.
'This also applies to Germany, which at least reported 'normal' stocks,' commented the report's author Helwig Schwartau.
'Significantly fewer apples were imported to the European region and even supplies from overseas could not compensate for the storage deficit.'
Data published by AMI showed that Europe's largest producer Italy had produced 473,000 tonnes of apples as of 1 April 2013, about 2 per cent less than during the same period of the previous year.
Poland's crop was slightly up on the year at about 400,000 tonnes and Germany's more or less the same at 153,000 tonnes, but France and the Netherlands both saw their production fall, to 137,000 tonnes and 84,000 tonnes respectively.
