China triples imports of Russian ice cream to $1.9 mln in 2023 - Chinese customs administration

MOSCOW. Jan 26 (Interfax) - China tripled imports of Russian ice cream to $1.9 million in 2023 from $620,900 in 2022, the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) said in a statement.

Russia's Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance (Rosselkhoznadzor) said that 50 Russian enterprises currently have the right to export ice cream to China.

The Agriculture Ministry's Agroexport center said that China is one of the promising markets for Russian ice cream, with supplies expected to increase to 1,900 tonnes by 2025 from 896 tonnes in 2021 to exceed $7 million. Russia's share in value terms should rise to 4.7% by 2025 from 3.8% in 2021.

As reported, Chinese President Xi Jinping prefers Russian ice cream, having said this on the sidelines of the G20 summit in 2016 after Russian President Vladimir Putin gave him a box of Russian ice cream.

Agroexport said that Russia exported 16,000 tonnes of ice cream exceeding $58 million in 2022, with Kazakhstan, Mongolia, the United States, and Belarus being the largest purchasers.