“We’re about to send a huge load of produce to Europe for next to nothing”

According to Stroilkov the season has been going really well otherwise: “Plums and peppers have been doing even better than expected this season, and those two have always done very well in the past. The same goes for the fresh white cabbage, which we export all year round.” Agro Kapital exports a wide variety of produce to Europe, and also a small amount to Russia. They even have plants outside of Macedonia, like in Greece where the citrus is produced.

When asked about the upcoming Russian ban on Macedonian peaches, Stroilkov isn’t worried: “We don’t export the peaches to Russia and we haven’t had any diseases on our peaches regardless. About 90 per cent of our produce goes to Europe, with only a very small amount of different products going into Russia.”

Even though quite a few products are heading towards the end of their season (Peach, Nectarine, Melons etc.) some of the products are about to start up. “In October we start our Kiwi-season, which we expect do be one of the most selling products during the upcoming months. Broccoli is also going to be a big hit, as it has been previous seasons,” Stroilkov states. “We are preparing for a new big star though, as Macedonian laws now allow us to grow cannabis, so we’re using 10 ha in greenhouses to produce cannabis for medical use.”