Russia clears 20,675 tonnes of Bosnian apples and pears from the 2026 harvest

Bosnia and Herzegovina has received permission to export 14,270 tonnes of apples and 6,405 tonnes of pears from the 2026 harvest to Russia, the country's Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, Staša Košarac, said after the latest session of the two countries' intergovernmental commission. The figures were reported from Belgrade on 25 September by TASS.

The decision sharply expands the volume Bosnian growers may place on the Russian market. A year earlier the permitted quantity stood at 4,000 tonnes of apples and 1,000 tonnes of pears, according to TASS. The news agency Prime described the same agreement as covering 14.3 thousand tonnes of Bosnian apples and 6.4 thousand tonnes of Bosnian pears.

Volumes cleared for the 2026 crop

• Apples: 14,270 tonnes, against 4,000 tonnes a year earlier
• Pears: 6,405 tonnes, against 1,000 tonnes a year earlier
• Combined: 20,675 tonnes, against 5,000 tonnes a year earlier

Taken together, the two categories amount to more than four times the previous allocation. Apple volumes rise roughly 3.6-fold and pear volumes more than six-fold. The clearance is tied specifically to the 2026 harvest, which places any shipments within the current marketing season rather than deferring them to a future crop.

What was agreed in Pale

The approval emerged from the regular session of the Russia–Bosnia and Herzegovina intergovernmental commission on trade and economic cooperation, held in the town of Pale on 24 and 25 September. Košarac headed the Bosnian delegation, while the Russian side was represented by Anton Shalaev, head of Rosstandart, the country's standards and metrology agency.

“This testifies to the awareness and understanding on the Russian side of the question of opening the Russian market to products from Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” Košarac said, as quoted by Radio and Television of Republika Srpska. His reference to both entities points to access for growers in each of them rather than in one part of the country only.

Phytosanitary memorandum next on the agenda

Košarac said the two countries will work on a memorandum of cooperation in the field of phytosanitary requirements, which in his words would “facilitate the adaptation of products from Bosnia and Herzegovina to the requirements of the Russian market.” Neither report specified a timetable for signing the document.

For exporters, the binding constraint is compliance rather than the headline number. An approved volume sets a ceiling on what may enter the market; actual shipments depend on certified packing houses, phytosanitary documentation and orders from Russian buyers. Apple and pear trade is seasonal and storage-dependent, with flows concentrated between the autumn harvest and the following spring, which limits the window in which the 2026 allocation can be used.

Two variables will determine whether the larger allocation converts into trade: how quickly the phytosanitary framework is formalised, and how competitive Bosnian fruit is on price and quality against other suppliers to Russia through the winter. Neither report gave data on the volumes actually shipped under last season's smaller allocation, so the utilisation rate of the previous quota remains unclear.