Exports of food of animal origin decreased by 14% in the two first quarters of this year compared to the same period last year, and a 25% decrease was recorded at the beginning of 2022. In total, 112,000 tonnes of products of animal origin were exported this year (in 2021, the number was about 130,000 tonnes). In the first six months of this year, total exports of fish and fish products, milk and dairy were lower than in the same period last year. Nevertheless, exports of meat, some dairy products, egg products and Lithuanian honey increased significantly, reports the VMVT.
The overall trends in Lithuanian exports of agricultural and food products, according to the Lithuanian Department of Statistics, remain positive: in recent years, there has been an increase in exports to EU countries, more and more novel food groups are being exported, and the list of countries importing Lithuanian products is expanding. At the beginning of the year, Lithuanian producers transported agricultural and food products to almost 130 countries worldwide.
“The second quarter of this year is more optimistic. I believe this shows that business is adapting, is active in new markets and is expanding its network of partners. We stand ready to continue helping to open new countries to Lithuanian products. We have already managed to reach an agreement in Taiwan for the approval of export authorisations for Lithuanian eggs, dairy and fishery products in the near future. We hope that the harmonisation of authorisations for beef and other meat products to Taiwan will not take long and we continue negotiations on new export certificates with 23 other countries,” Mantas Staškevičius, Director of the VMVT, comments on export data for the first half of 2022.
Exports of milk and dairy products are estimated at 50,000 tonnes this half-year, compared to over 56,000 tonnes in both quarters of last year. Compared to the first half of last year, more butter (over 1,000 tonnes), cheese (over 16,000 tonnes), cheese products (almost 8,000 tonnes) and lactose (over 1,600 tonnes) were exported this year. The markets importing dairy products remain stable, namely: Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Israel, Morocco, Indonesia and the USA.
