Characteristics of the world and Russian production of fruits products (apples and pears)

The paper deals with the peculiarities of the biological characteristics of the most important fruit crops of temperate climates – apple and pear (Rosaceae family, subfamily Maloideae), taking into account the world, national and regional cultivation. Both cultures are characterized by significant food and commodity value, have some differences in the chemical composition of the fruit, including the leading components of the mass and biologically active substances, which determine the peculiarities of their use in the human diet. In both global and national fruit-growing, pears play a secondary role compared to apple, giving way to the number of varieties, the volume of production and the areas occupied. Based on the analysis of available statistical data of the FAO database, the dynamics of changes from 1990 to 2016 of the world production of apple and pear fruits with visualization on the continents, identifying world leaders and major trends are considered. For the USSR (from 1962 to 1990) and in Russian Federation (from 1992 to 2016) the paper presents a picture of changes in the volume of fruit production, discusses the status of fruit production in the country. The features of the historical development and current state of fruit growing in the Samara Region and prospects are discussed.