Ukrainian company Sady Dnipra has achieved a historic milestone by exporting fresh pears to the Middle East for the first time – specifically to the premium market of Saudi Arabia, representatives of the company told the EastFruit project. This is a significant achievement for Ukrainian horticulture: Ukraine has traditionally been a net importer of fresh pears, and the shipment was made by sea through Ukrainian ports despite the ongoing Russian aggression against Ukraine.
“Pear production in Ukraine is growing rapidly, though this isn’t yet widely visible because many young orchards have been planted that haven’t reached full production capacity. Since domestic pear consumption isn’t increasing, prices in the Ukrainian market will decline. And while prices within the country are often still higher than on external markets, our company decided to start exploring foreign markets now to work out the logistics and establish Ukraine as an exporter of high-quality pears to premium markets,” says Oleksandr Pakhno, head of Sady Dnipra (Ukraine), UApple brand.
The company is known for its innovative approach to fruit cultivation, storage, and post-harvest handling technologies, as well as marketing. Sady Dnipra began growing pears several years ago: in 2020, the company announced the establishment of a new orchard with the Noyabrska and Williams varieties. In 2021, a pear orchard of approximately 30 hectares was planted, after which the company gradually expanded its acreage under this crop.
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“We always take a strategic approach to planning our operations. We decided not to wait until Ukraine’s pear market becomes oversaturated, but to act proactively. This way, we’re smoothing out potential price shocks not only for ourselves but also for other Ukrainian growers who haven’t yet addressed this likely challenge,” adds Oleksandr Pakhno.
Although the company could currently earn more with less effort by selling on Ukraine’s domestic market, it chose to study logistics, packaging, quality, and transportation in advance to be able to diversify its sales markets, as it has already done with apples.
“Another important aspect: Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries are accustomed to pear varieties from South Africa. Our varieties aren’t yet well-known there, and neither are Ukrainian suppliers. We went through this with our apples, which now have an excellent reputation there. Following this pattern, we’re essentially creating a market for Ukrainian suppliers in the Middle East,” notes the head of Sady Dnipra.
In his view, the Middle Eastern market is more attractive for Ukrainian exporters than the EU market. “In the European Union, competition from Belgium and the Netherlands, and potentially Portugal in the future, is very high. Since Ukrainian pears have high BRIX levels, they’re ideally suited for the Middle East and possibly even for premium Asian markets.”
Sady Dnipra is one of the leading companies in the production and exports of Ukrainian fresh apples, officially operating since 2016 and maintaining high international standards for several years, targeting premium segments in the EU, UK, Middle East and South East Asia. The company is known for its high-quality products and implementation of innovative technological solutions.
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