Turkey continues to function as a transshipment hub for fruit exports to Russia

Due to sanctions that were implemented on Russia following the invasion of Ukraine, Turkey is functioning as a transshipment port between Russia and exporting countries. Russia is a large market for fresh produce especially for Turkish fruit and vegetable exporters due to its advantageous geographic location. Following the Russia-Ukraine war, this advantage started to be useful for other exporting countries as well who want to export to Russia.

For example, avocado demand in Russia is on the rise. Kenyan exporters are aware of the high demand from Russia but they cannot ship directly to Russia due to the sanctions. This is where Turkish companies come into play. They purchase from Kenyan exporters and re-export to their customers in Russia because Turkey has good political relations with Russia. Because of this, Turkey can still directly export to Russia without restrictions.