Italian fruit and vegetable exports rise 4.4% in value in first half of 2026 as volumes fall

Italian exports of unprocessed fruit and vegetables rose 4.4% in value in the first half of 2026 while falling 3.4% in volume compared with the same period a year earlier, according to Istat foreign trade figures processed by the exporters' association Fruitimprese and reported by myfruit.it.

Imports moved the other way, gaining 1.6% in volume and 7.1% in value. The result was a trade balance in deficit by €20.4 million. Measured in tonnage, imports exceeded exports by almost 300,000 tonnes — 297,478 tonnes precisely.

Apples slip, kiwifruit and strawberries advance

Fresh fruit, the largest single item in Italian produce exports, saw volumes ease 0.8% while export value grew 3.1% against the first six months of 2025. Apples, which account for more than half of the segment, lost ground after several strong years, down 4.34% in volume and 0.79% in value.

Kiwifruit exports rose 12.32% in quantity and 16.93% in value, a gain Fruitimprese links to the commercial success of new yellow and red varieties. Strawberries, a typical first-half product, gained 15.76% in volume and 14.92% in value. Pear exports remained weak, with the association pointing to the autumn campaign for a recovery.

Fresh fruit imports rose 5.9% in volume and 7.5% in value, as companies turned increasingly to foreign supply in the absence of domestic product.

Citrus deficit widens after cyclone Harry

The trend is clearest in citrus. Cyclone Harry and other production problems cut export volumes 14.7% in the first six months, while values held up better, down only 3.4%. Imports jumped 29.5% in quantity and 32.4% in value, leaving the citrus trade balance more than €20 million in deficit. Lemons, less exposed to Harry, increased export value 17.04%, while orange exports fell 21.61% in volume and 17.50% in value.

Nuts and dried fruit were the liveliest segment of the half-year. Exports rose 4.5% in volume and 37.2% in value, while imports gained 8.6% in quantity and 18.1% in value, passing €1 billion. Fruitimprese describes this as a significant recovery for a segment that had stopped growing at earlier rates over the past two years.

Tubers, pulses and vegetables tracked the overall pattern, with volumes down 4% and values up 2.6%. Imports in the segment fell 5.9% in quantity, but the value of imported tomatoes rose 23.24% against the same period of 2025 despite a 2.51% decline in volume.

Tropical fruit imports grew 2.3% in quantity and 5.3% in value, with divergent movements by product:

• pineapple imports recovered, up 9.95% in volume and 15.45% in value;
• bananas declined 5.1% in quantity and 2.35% in value;
• avocado continued to expand, with volumes up 19% and values up 7.13%.

War-related costs weigh on the export campaign

Fruitimprese president Marco Salvi called the first-half results satisfactory, but said they already showed “the unfavourable effects of the ongoing wars, which have caused a generalised increase in production costs and significant logistical difficulties, in particular for those serving Asian markets”.

The first apple shipments are sailing in these weeks and no difficulties are currently reported for transit through the Suez Canal. For Arab countries, however, exporters are obliged to use combined ship-rail transport from the port of Al Fujairah or from Jeddah, continuing by truck over routes of more than 2,000 km.

“In practice, to the general increase in production costs caused by higher fuel prices we must add logistics costs, for an export campaign that will register an additional burden for operators of between 20 and 30%,” Salvi said.

Production and new market access

Table grape sales are not meeting expectations, while harvesting is hampered by heat and humidity that prevent long storage. Italy expects a larger kiwifruit crop in yellow varieties and lower green kiwi output, while Greece, its main competitor, is dealing with production up 30%. In citrus, Spain expects harvesting to start two weeks early, and Salvi said heat is likely to disrupt Italian production calendars as well. Abate pears show encouraging signals, with output slightly above recent disastrous seasons though not comparable to ten years ago.

Negotiations concluded over the summer opened the Vietnamese market to Italian kiwifruit and the Ecuadorian market to pears. The first Italian table grapes are due to ship to South Africa in the coming weeks, a result of the institutional mission led by Minister Lollobrigida in June in which Fruitimprese took part.

Regulatory pressure from Brussels

Salvi said first results from new genomic techniques remain distant and the reform of plant protection product rules is stalled. Contrary to statements by Commissioner Hansen, he added, active substances continue to be withdrawn from the market without valid alternatives for growers.

On the PPWR packaging regulation, in force since 12 August, Salvi said it has made users rather than packaging suppliers responsible for compliance with European standards on chemical characteristics and packaging performance. European Parliament President Roberta Metsola described the regulation at the recent Rimini meeting as a set of rigid rules that are counterproductive for small and medium-sized enterprises.