Vēlreiz par zelta ogu – smiltsērkšķiem | [Once again about the golden berry – sea buckthorn]

So far, sea buckthorn growers in Latvia have developed relatively quietly and imperceptibly, to a certain extent, learning from the bitter experience of Estonians. There before reckless and excessive for twenty years due to advertising, the lawsuit quickly became a sea buckthorn areas. When they all began to produce fruit, it fell overproduction, because at that time there was no such great demand neither in the Baltic countries nor elsewhere. In terms of area, sea buckthorn is the third fruit growing crop in Latvia after apple trees and currants. The approximate number of hectares occupied by high-quality varieties of sea buckthorn is around 900. There are around 250 growers, but the sizes of the gardens are very different ─ from 100 bushes to 30 hectares. The visible yield is about 300 to 400 tons per year. In Estonia, the orchards, where the goal is to obtain harvest rather than area payments, occupy around 600 hectares, the fruits are mostly exported to Finland. In Lithuania gardens of quality varieties began to appear only before for eight years, until then seedlings were planted there. In general, Lithuania gets even a little more than in Latvia and Estonia combined, but the quality of the fruit is lower. Most of the largest sea buckthorn growers in Latvia have joined together in the “Baltijas ogu dārzi” cooperative. Last season, the purchase price for fruits with branches was about 1.00 EUR/kg. Thanks to the international marketing activities of “Baltijas ogu dārzi” cooperative, this year it is similar to 1.00–1.10 euros/kg. The largest local fruit processors are “Very Berry”, “AmberFarm”, “Satori alfa” and “Dienvidi Plus”. Most of the sea buckthorn fruits grown in Latvia are exported. Berries are exported to Finland, France, Sweden and Canada. Some of those that arrive in Canada are resold to the United States. Most of the processed products are sold on the domestic market, although the company "Very Berry" exports juice to Belgium, Lithuania, Finland and France.