MOSCOW, July 15 The volume of apples imported into the Russian Federation from North Korea will not be large and is unlikely to exceed 5%, but the country could start supplying rice to Russia, this opinion was expressed by a group expert ACRA corporate ratings Anton Trenin.
Earlier on Monday, Rosselkhoznadzor said that Russia imported 42 thousand tons of apples in June, which is 1.8 times more than a year ago. In addition, North Korea received permission to supply them to the Russian Federation, and the countries are also discussing the possibility of starting supplies of ginseng to Russia. 
«»I believe that the volume of imports of apples from the DPRK will not be large. Firstly, self-sufficiency in apples from Russia's own production is close to 80%, so imports account for a relatively small part (even despite the likely decrease in the apple harvest this year from -for frost),” Trenin said.
In addition, according to the expert, there is high competition in the apple market among supplying countries, and the leading countries in terms of supply volumes change from year to year, while the share of supplies from one country, as a rule, is at a moderate level and does not exceed 20% in general imports.
«»Based on this, I conclude that as a result of the DPRK's entry into this market, the country's share will be limited and is unlikely to exceed 5%. In addition, the long transport distance in relation to the European part of Russia may slightly increase the cost of the final cost of products from the DPRK compared to other suppliers (Belarus, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Serbia),” the analyst explained.
At the same time, he noted the export potential of other food groups from the DPRK. “Potentially, in the event of high harvests, North Korea could supply rice to Russia, which is the main agricultural product there,” Trenin concluded.
