Russian Agriculture News

It also indirectly helps to strengthen the Ruble, as trading on these terms will generate demand for the currency.

Russia should aim to reach 200 million tons per year. There is a lot of room for growth in the agricultural sector as the market is huge and growing.

Russia ramps up global food exports, 02.03.2023.

Supplies have exceeded 70 million tons in 2022, according to the agriculture ministry.

Russia’s food exports jumped by 12% in monetary terms last year to more than 70 million tons, despite difficulties caused by Western sanctions, the country’s Ministry of Agriculture reported on Thursday.

The ministry highlighted that domestic agricultural products had been supplied to 150 countries, emphasizing that Russia’s contribution to world food security is constantly growing.

According to the latest report, exports of oil and fat products soared by 26%, meat and dairy products rose by 16%, and grain exports increased by 14%.

The ministry also noted results in its work on reorienting export flows, building new logistics chains, and financial transactions, as well as facilitating conditions for providing state support. “This will help to further increase exports to priority markets,” it wrote on its official Telegram channel.

Western sanctions imposed on Russia have been disrupting the country’s food supplies to the world market, threatening to exacerbate the global food crisis.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that, despite the obstacles, Russia remains ready to help poor nations battle hunger, providing them with the “necessary assistance.”

https://www.rt.com/business/570906-russia-global-food-exports/

Russia becomes a leader in the export of another food product, by Olga Samofalova for VZGLYAD. 02.06.2023.

Russia can become the world leader in the export of not only wheat, but also sunflower oil in the 2022-2023 agricultural year, the US Department of Agriculture expects. So far, Ukraine has tenaciously held the first place. How does Russia manage to come forward and why did Ukraine start exporting sunflower seeds instead of sunflower oil, that is, raw materials instead of a finished product?

Until 2022, Ukraine was the world's leading exporter of sunflower oil. It occupied half of the world market for this product. The main buyers of Ukrainian sunflower oil were large consumers, primarily the EU and India.

Russia was also a significant player, but it was seriously inferior to Ukraine: three years ago, its share in the world sunflower oil trade market was 28% against 50% for the leader.

However, in the 2022-2023 agricultural year, the situation will change dramatically. The US Department of Agriculture predicts that in the 2022-2023 marketing year, Russia will eclipse Ukraine in sunflower oil exports, which will account for 35% of trade versus 34% for Ukraine. Exports from Ukraine will fall by 45% compared to the maximum set in the 2019-2020 agricultural year - up to 3.65 million tons. Russia exports 3.7 million tons of sunflower oil.
What explains the success of Russia and the failure of Ukraine?

The Ukrainian authorities complain that the export of sunflower oil is falling, while the export of sunflower seeds has grown 20 times to 2.45 million tons in 2022-2023. For example, if in 2021 Ukraine supplied only 25 thousand tons of sunflower seeds to the EU, then in 2022 it will be 72 times more - as much as 1.8 million tons. Due to the influx of cheap Ukrainian seeds, for example, Bulgaria suffers, where instead of the usual 3,000 tons, 892,000 tons of cheap Ukrainian seeds came. As a result, 77% of Bulgarian sunflower remains unprocessed in warehouses, and local farmers go bankrupt. Because oil refineries in Europe prefer to buy cheaper seeds from Ukraine than from local farmers.

Ukraine has now become the largest seed exporter, accounting for 45% of world trade compared to less than 5% previously. However, the joy of this is overshadowed by the loss of exports of sunflower oil, on which it was possible to earn many times more than on the sale of raw materials (seeds).

Thus, in calendar year 2021, sunflower oil brought Ukraine the largest income of all other agricultural exports. She earned $6.4 billion from it, plus another $1.2 billion from the export of sunflower meal. On corn and wheat, for comparison, Ukraine earned less - 5.9 and 5.2 billion dollars.

“Traditionally, Ukraine exported not seeds, but sunflower oil to Europe in large volume containers, and in Europe it was already bottled in liter and 1.5 liter bottles and earned on resale. However, Ukraine lost many of its sunflower oil plants last year. There are only three of them left in the LPR.

Apparently, there is a shortage of capacities for sunflower processing in Ukraine. Therefore, perhaps, for the first time since 1991, Ukraine began to export sunflower seeds in the form of seeds, not oil,” explains political scientist and economist Ivan Lizan.

However, according to IKAR (Institute for Agricultural Market Studies), sunflower production in Ukraine will be greatly reduced in the new season - to 10-10.5 million tons against 14-17 million tons in previous seasons.

The decline in income from agricultural exports is critical for the Ukrainian economy, because it accounts for almost half of the country's income. In addition, it could lose oilseed processing plants along with a lot of jobs. And about 14% of the population of Ukraine is employed in agriculture. As a result, in the future the country itself will have to become an importer of more expensive sunflower oil from the same Europe. Ukrainians could already see similar processes in their industry, for example, the closure of oil refineries and the forced import of more expensive gasoline and diesel.

In Russia, the situation with the production and export of all oilseeds in general is on the rise. According to IKAR, the total oilseed crop in Russia turned out to be very high, it could reach 27.5-28.8 million tons in test weight, which will exceed the previous record recorded in 2021 by 2.7-4 million tons. Sunflower harvest also promises to set a new record. According to IKAR, it will be 15.7-16.25 million tons in test weight against a record in 2021 of 15.65 million tons.

IKAR experts expect that in the 2022/2023 season a new sunflower oil production record will be reached, which will exceed 6 million tons. The previous record of 5.9 million tons took place in the 2019/2020 season. Thus, the export of sunflower oil can potentially exceed the previous record of 3.85 million tons and overcome the threshold of 4 million tons.

The Russian industry needs to continue to diversify the directions of deliveries and increase shipments to Asian countries, according to IKAR.

“Oilseeds are one of those areas in the agro-industrial complex that grows every year. Demand for oilseeds is increasing, and Russia has the ability to respond to this demand. Cultivated areas are growing, new enterprises are appearing, and existing ones are increasing productivity,” says Artem Deev, Head of the Analytical Department at AMarkets.

The record harvest last year became possible not only due to the weather, but also due to the fact that for several years in a row investments in the sector have increased: equipment, seed material have been purchased, the land fund has increased, etc., explains Deev. It helps, of course, the growth in demand in the world as a whole for vegetable oils - sunflower, rapeseed, corn, as well as the withdrawal of competitors from the market, including Ukraine.

“Russia can compete for the title of leader in the export of vegetable oils. To do this, it is necessary to increase the capacity of deliveries not only through the ports of the south of Russia, but also in the Far East (Vladivostok) and the West (Ust-Luga), and expand the geography of deliveries.

Now more than 60% of Russian vegetable oils supplies go to Turkey, India, Iran, Egypt and China, but it is possible to expand the export of oils to other countries in Africa and Asia, where demand is growing. Otherwise, our country has all the opportunities to increase production in the sector - sown areas, seed fund, modern agricultural technology and labor force,” the source concludes.

https://vz.ru/economy/2023/2/6/1197844.html

Comment of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation to the report of the company "Yakov and partners"

despite a slight reduction in marginality in crop production against the background of lower selling prices for products, profitability in the sector, taking into account state support, remains at an acceptable level.

In order to ensure a balance of supply in the market and maximum profitability of crop production in 2023, it is planned to reduce the acreage under wheat, the target is 80-85 million tons.

The projected export volumes will effectively remove excess grain from the Russian market before the new harvest arrives. The ministry plans that grain exports for the first half of the year will amount to about 30 million tons, or about 5 million tons per month.

The share of profitable farms by the end of 2022 exceeded 90% against 86% in 2021.

Agriculture in 2022 demonstrated an increase in production by more than 10%, in crop production the indicator increased by almost 16%.

https://zerno.ru/node/21891

Roskachestvo: wine producers in Russia can provide two-thirds of the market, 02.16.2023.

Roskachestvo: wine producers in Russia can supply the market by about two-thirds.

MOSCOW, February 16 - RIA Novosti. Wine production in Russia is currently capable of providing the domestic market by about two-thirds, the rest is room for growth, where bruts and extra-bruts showed themselves most actively last year, Olesya, director of the department for research and promotion of domestic wine products of Roskachestvo, told RIA Novosti.

"According to EGAIS, the volume of the Russian wine market today is about 733 million liters, of which 200 million liters are sparkling wines. Today, Russia produces 327 million liters of still wine and 162 million liters of sparkling wine per year. That is Russian production can now provide the market with wine products by about two-thirds, and the remaining third is an opportunity for growth," Bunyaeva said.

At the same time, according to her, in 2022 sparkling wines became the most growing category in sales in the domestic market - they added more than 8%. "The most active development is in the category of sparkling wines produced by the acratophoric method. Such wines are supplied to Russia from a number of regions of Italy - the leader in the import of sparkling wines to Russia," the expert emphasized.

In addition, the range has also expanded. So, if in 2021 winemakers produced 970 trade units (SKU) of sparkling wines, then in 2022 - 1109. Brut and extra-brut were the most active. There were 586 such wines produced, compared to 508 a year earlier.

The organization also records an increase in quality in this category. The results of the study "Wine Guide of Russia", issued by Roskachestvo, showed that 92% of the samples meet the increased standard, set at 78 points on a 100-point scale. And almost half of the wines were marked by tasters with scores of 81 and above, which corresponds to the level of a prize at tasting competitions.

https://ria.ru/20230216/vino-1852430817.html

The Russian Federation harvested a record harvest of fruits and berries in 2022, 02.28.2023.

In 2022, Russia harvested a record harvest of fruits and berries - more than 1.5 million tons, the Ministry of Agriculture reported. At the same time, according to statistics, last year the share of domestic seedlings in the market was 74%. It is noted that the volume of state support for horticulture in recent years, only within the framework of incentive subsidies, amounted to about 5 billion rubles annually. This year, funding has been increased almost 1.5 times, to 7.33 billion rubles, Izvestia TV channel reports . According to the Ministry of Agriculture, by 2027 the organized sector will produce about 2 million tons of fruit and berry products, by 2030 - almost 2.5 million tons.

https://iz.ru/1476752/video/rf-sobrala-rekordnyi-urozhai-plodov-i-iagod-v-2022-godu

'Bloomberg': Russia exports almost twice as much wheat amid Ukraine conflict, 03.04.2023.

Russia's wheat exports, its main crop, reached almost double in January and February compared to the same period in 2022, according to data from Logistic OS, quoted by the US agency 'Bloomberg'.

"Its maritime shipments of wheat [from Russia] accounted for 6.1 million tons, approximately 90% more than in the same period of the previous year," says the media specialized in economics and finance.

The recent boom in exports, it indicates, is a sign that carriers have overcome some of the financing and insurance complications caused by Western sanctions against Russia. While food has not been included as part of the sanctions, restrictions on state-owned banks and companies have complicated trade in this area.

According to Bloomberg, buyers rejected shipments at the beginning of the season, when prices were not so attractive. However, thanks to last year's massive harvest allowing Russian grain to rank among the cheapest in the world, they are now making a comeback.

Another explanation for the strong exports of the Eurasian country is the sales registered later than usual, towards the end of 2022, when Russian wheat regained its competitive advantage, as explained to Bloomberg by Andrey Sisov, director of the consulting firm SovEcon.

At the same time, there is a lot of demand for grain from Russia at present. In particular, wheat futures have fallen to the lowest level in at least a year in Chicago and Paris, so large volumes of Russian wheat could limit prices for the rest of the season.

And although the volumes of Ukrainian wheat are also significant, they are below the peaks set at the end of last year.

"The supplies from both nations are helping to curb the worsening of global food inflation," Bloomberg said.

To the above is added the possibility of renewing the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which allows Ukrainian cargoes to sail through a secure corridor. However, a source familiar with the matter assured Sputnik that talks on the issue are stalled. For his part, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused the West of burying the UN humanitarian initiative by putting obstacles to the export of Russian fertilizers.

On July 22, Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and the UN signed an agreement to unblock the export of grain and fertilizers from Ukraine through the Black Sea, in the midst of hostilities. Representatives of the Ukrainian government signed a similar document with Ankara and representatives of the UN.

In addition, Moscow signed a memorandum with the UN to facilitate the export of Russian fertilizers and agricultural products to international markets. This agreement was extended for an additional 120 days, until March 18, 2023.

However, on March 2, the UN representation at the Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul reported that the Black Sea initiative has not allowed the export of Russian fertilizers, including ammonia.

On February 10, Russia's permanent representative to the UN Vasily Nebenzia reported that companies refuse to conduct business with Russian food and fertilizer suppliers for fear of secondary Western sanctions. Nebenzia even assured that Moscow failed to export grain within the framework of the initiative, while Russian fertilizers sent to Africa for free have continued to be blocked at European ports since last September.

Since February 24, 2022, Russia has been conducting a special military operation in Ukraine, the goal of which, according to President Vladimir Putin, is the demilitarization and denazification of the neighboring country.

Since then, the EU bloc has approved ten packages of sanctions against Moscow that include financial and trade restrictions, as well as personal sanctions.

Yandex Translate from Spanish

https://sputniknews.lat/20230304/bloomberg-rusia-exporta-casi-el-doble-de-trigo-en-medio-del-conflicto-en-ucrania-1136441325.html

The Grain Crash Sentences the Entire Economy of Ukraine, by Nikolai Storozhenko for VZGLYAD. 03.07.2023.

Ukrainian farmers confessed their inability to plant a new crop.

"Impossible!" With such an emotional exclamation, Ukrainian farmers assess the likelihood of holding the upcoming sowing campaign. In other words, the granary of Europe, which until recently was Ukraine, can no longer produce grain. The blame for this is not only the sharply increased prices for fertilizers, but in general the entire anti-Russian policy of the Kyiv regime.

On March 18, the second 120-day term of the Black Sea Grain Initiative (grain deal) expires. For Ukraine, this agreement has become a kind of lifeline, quite comparable to foreign financial assistance. Judge for yourself. If the total export of the Ukrainian agro-industrial complex in 2022 is about 23 billion dollars, then the grain corridor that has been operating for five months has brought it 6-7 billion dollars.

Today, Ukraine is in favor of another extension of the grain deal and even insists on extending the term of the agreement to one year. But the question arises: what is Ukraine going to carry along this corridor?

We don't sow, we don't plow

In early March, the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on the results of the work of the Black Sea Grain Initiative. Among other things, the statement provides statistics on cargoes sent by Kiev along the grain corridor: 49% - corn, 28% - wheat, 6% - sunflower meal and 5% - sunflower oil. A month earlier, President of the Ukrainian Grain Association (UGA) Mykola Gorbachev, speaking at the Paris Grain Conference, mentioned that 10% of the 2022 corn crop had not yet been harvested.

Many remember last year's tantrums of the West about imminent famine threatening the planet. The culprit of which is Russia and the SVO conducted by it in Ukraine. And then it turns out that Ukraine has not even fully harvested the harvest. And not three spikelets. 10% of the corn crop is 3 million tons.

Why didn't they collect it? And unprofitable. Transshipment was $8/ton, now $35, mainly due to insurance that takes into account military risks. Cleaning, drying, transport to the port - all these costs have increased due to the rise in energy prices. As a result, Ukrainian farmers did not fully harvest last year's crop, and they do not want to sow a new one. The UGA forecast for 2023 is 50 million tons of grain and oilseeds. In 2022, there were 67 million tons. In 2021 - 106 million.

The second important forecast is that Ukrainian farmers are reducing crops of unprofitable corn and are preparing to sow more oilseeds (sunflower, rapeseed). “For the first time, the area under oilseeds will be larger than under grains.” According to Denis Marchuk, Deputy Chairman of the Ukrainian Agrarian Council, corn crops will be reduced by 30-35%, which is why for the first time in many years, farmers even remembered the possibility of limiting grain exports.

The fact is that not only the 2023 harvest forecast has already been announced, but also the expected export volumes: 34 million tons of grain, which is even less than in 2021/2022 (41 million tons). And this means not only that less grain will be exported. A decrease in crops and yields will result in a reduction in chicken meat and chicken eggs.

Export of agricultural products brought Ukraine last year more than half of export earnings. The reduction in the grain harvest is a blow to the entire production chain.

Fertilizers are not needed, but they are not enough

The harvest suffers not only from the reduction of crops. Listen to this emotional dialogue between a farmer and a journalist, it's about corn and fertilizers. And it is noteworthy not only that a ton of ammonia for a Ukrainian farmer has increased in price from nine to 59 thousand hryvnia. And the fact that the journalist stubbornly does not understand the scale of the problem:

- I need 12 million dollars only for saltpeter for corn.

- So you are leading to something that is unprofitable?

- Not unprofitable, but impossible!

- Profitable?

- Impossible! I don't have that kind of money.

But it cannot be said that the Ukrainian authorities are inactive. Firstly, assistance was requested and received from the American USAID: micro-, mini- and other small farms will receive a ton of fertilizer - for free. Well. Those who have 6-10 hectares will have enough tons.

Secondly, Ukrainian scammers, it turns out, can not only lure the card number and CVV over the phone. In the realities of their homeland, they are like a fish in water. Therefore, they are already successfully throwing farmers on the sale of batches of fertilizers that do not exist in nature. And the Ukrainian state looks at them and shakes them off, squeezing out batches of Belaruskali and Uralkali fertilizers that have hung in Ukraine. It also confiscates contraband consignments of urea.

Thirdly, in April, a large fertilizer manufacturer Sumykhimprom begins operations in Ukraine. True, those 200 thousand tons, which the enterprise is going to produce before October, do not fall into this sowing campaign. Not to mention the fact that its production of fertilizers in Ukraine fell from 5.2 million tons (2021) to 1.13 million tons (2022).

Ukraine, of course, compensates for the deficit with imports. But last year, European fertilizer producers, amid record gas prices, massively cut or even suspended production. As a result, prices skyrocketed – and so did fertilizer prices. It is pointless to sow corn, an elderly farmer on the throne is tearing his hair out of desperation, curtain.

Although the price is only half the problem. Both military and civilian logistics of Ukraine today hang on the Danube ports. According to market participants, a ship with fertilizers from Azerbaijan will take 1.5-2 months to reach the Ukrainian buyer.

The situation is terrible: even against the backdrop of a sharp drop in demand for fertilizers, they are still not enough : “... even if Cherkasy Azot and Rovnoazot together produce 150 thousand tons of nitrogen per month, they will not close the demand in three months. There are no leftovers on the market. Everything that rides is sold on wheels.”

Superpower with feet of clay

In 2016, then-U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt put forward the concept of Ukraine as an agrarian superpower. Forgetting to clarify that millions of export tons of grain and sunflower are kept on cheap diesel, ammonia and saltpeter. The applicants, of course, are mainly from Russia.

At the same time, Ukraine has the opportunity to make life much easier not only for itself, but also for other consumers of nitrogen fertilizers in the European market. Namely, to unblock transit through the ammonia pipeline Tolyatti - Gorlovka - Odessa.

Of course, no one offers Ukraine to buy these annual 2 million tons of ammonia, God forbid. And why? Hybrid schemes for the purchase of Russian energy resources have been developed since the time of Petro Poroshenko. Ammonia is loaded onto a ship (say, Romanian). And then it is unloaded - already like Romanian.

Such a Black Sea Ammonia Initiative would rival the profitability of the Grain Corridor. And most importantly, Ukrainian farmers would not have to overpay for fertilizers by 6-7 times. If we count, unblocking transit is much more profitable for Ukraine than for Russia. There will be no harvest in Ukraine - the demand for Russian grain will grow. But it is Ukraine that is torpedoing this issue, continuing to buy fertilizers not even at exorbitant prices, but twice at exorbitant prices. Why?

Because this is more a political issue than an economic one. First, fertilizers, then - Russian gas to Ukrainian plants, Russian electricity. Further Russian diesel fuel, cement, building materials...

Although it will not come to this - already on the example of fertilizers everything is more than clear. Ukraine talks a lot and often about the damage from hostilities. However, it does the main damage to itself - by breaking economic ties with Russia, which strengthened the most profitable aspects of the Ukrainian economy. If they are restored, it will suddenly turn out that interrupting the special operation is pointless and criminal, primarily based on Ukrainian national interests.

... And it would be good for the Zelensky gang to show an interview with that farmer. Grandfather does not only talk about his household. By and large, this is a sentence for the entire Ukrainian economy.

https://vz.ru/world/2023/3/7/1202010.html

Russia has found a powerful new weapon in the ground, by Kirill Strelnikov for RIANOVOSTI. 03.10.2023.

Recently, the US Department of Agriculture admitted through gritted teeth that its forecast for wheat exports from Russia remains high - at the level of 43.5 million tons. In fact, according to the Russian Ministry of Agriculture, wheat exports in the 2022-2023 season are expected to be significantly higher - at the level of 55-60 million tons (against 32.6 million tons in 2021-2022), which is the highest figure in the last five years. years. But even if we take the word of our non-partners (who bashfully did not include the possibilities of Crimea in the calculation), it is obvious that Russia has firmly mastered a powerful lever of influence on world politics and the economy, the significance of which will only grow from year to year.

As Vladimir Putin already noted in his recent message , the 2022 sanctions year was a historically record year for Russia: at least 150 million tons of grain and legumes were harvested in the country (almost a third more than a year earlier), and grain exports in value terms increased by 15 percent. In January and February 2023 alone, the volume of wheat supplies from Russia almost doubled compared to the same period last year. At the same time, due to a relatively small population compared to the largest sown areas in the world, Russia's domestic demand for grain consumption is only about 75-80 million tons per year. With our export figures, we are guaranteed to be left with massive reserves of over 17 million tons of wheat and over 25 million tons of all grain. This has never happened before, which means that the bread cards that the authors of the sanctions threaten us with will most likely come in handy for them in the near future.

Wheat, corn and barley account for 94 percent of all grains in the world, and for the population of many countries, bread is the basis of nutrition, which, given the negative global trends, strengthens Russia's position as a global food bank that does not print paper loans, but ensures world food security in more than 130 states.

At the moment, Russia is the world leader in the export of wheat and occupies about 19 percent of the world market. Our grain is not available only on two continents - in Antarctica and Australia , and every fifth piece of bread in the world is of Russian origin. Any attempt to reduce Russia's influence in providing the planet with food will instantly cause cataclysms on a gigantic scale in the world, engulfing both the US and the EU - and the collective West is well aware of this. That is why Russian exports of grains and fertilizers were removed from the sanctions lists, and right now Western countries are feverishly trying to extend the grain deal, while the UN Secretary General himself is personally running around the world so that Russian exports of fertilizers are not hindered.

The explanation for such generosity, softness and fluffiness lies on the surface: the world is threatened with a large-scale food crisis, the end of which even the most far-sighted and biased experts do not see. World stocks of wheat and barley are at their lowest levels in five years, while cereal consumption has reached a multi-year high. Experts expect another scarce season for wheat and barley in the world, which will inevitably lead to a decrease in grain stocks. World Bank and World Economic Forum officials admit that 349 million people in 79 countries are on the verge of starvation and the situation will only worsen due to the global decline in food production predicted in 2023 to the lowest level in three years. For example, in the 170 millionth Bangladesh, wheat prices doubled last year, which is why they urgently switch to cheaper rice. The "world garden" represented by the states of the eurozone did not stand aside and also felt the approach of teeth to the shelf: food inflation in January 2023 there was 14.1 percent - and this is just the beginning.

The onset of the crisis is brought closer by a steady increase in population, animal husbandry, adverse climate change, as well as a decline in food production in countries that were previously among the leaders: for example, the wheat harvest in Ukraine, which ranked second in wheat and barley production after Russia with shares of 28 and 29 percent, respectively, according to some estimates, will decrease by a third, and its exports by several times. Droughts will cause wheat exports from Argentina to plummet , with bad news pouring in from Australia, India and the EU.

The consolidated position of experts from friendly, unfriendly and neutral countries is simple: the conditions for a significant decline in world grain prices relative to July-August 2022 are currently not visible; due to a decrease in profitability in some countries, the fall in the harvest in 2023 may be almost one and a half times; The general situation on the world market encourages further price increases.

Back in 2018, Vladimir Putin said that Russia was already earning no less from food than from arms exports. We see a similar state of affairs now: according to open data, Russia’s portfolio of export defense orders is at least $50 billion, and the minimum predicted revenue from food sales in 2023 is estimated at $40 billion.

Unlike weapons that are made by machine tools, in the food market that the earth gives birth to, there is nothing and no one to replace Russia, which means that our country's influence on the global market and global politics will only increase.

Our enemies can, out of meanness and envy, cancel Swan Lake or the Russian language, but they will not be able to cancel Russian bread.

Russophobia is an excellent product, but you can’t smear oil on it, and you always want to eat.

https://ria.ru/20230310/rossiya-1856869580.html

Rosstat has published the final data on the gross harvest of agricultural crops

As reported in the materials of Rosstat, the harvest of grain and leguminous crops in net weight amounted to 157.67 million tons against 121.39 million tons in 2021. The previous record for grain harvest was set in 2017 and amounted to 135.5 million tons.

104.23 million tons of wheat were harvested (76.06 million tons in 2021):
Winter wheat - 74 million tons (53 million)
spring - 30.23 million tons (23 million)

Rye - 2.18 million tons (1.7 million tons)

Barley - 23.4 million tons (18 million tons)
winter - 3.4 million tons (2.9 million tons)
spring - 20 million tons (15.1 million tons)

Corn -15.85 million tons (15.2 million tons).

Rice - 923.1 thousand tons (1.076 million tons)

Buckwheat - 1.22 million tons (919.1 thousand tons)

Oilseeds
Sunflower - 16.35 million tons (15.65 million tons)

Soybeans - 6 million tons (4.8 million tons)

Full table for all cultures https://zerno.ru/node/22189

Russia’s 2022 meat exports hit 650,000 tons — veterinary watchdog, 04.04.2023.

Meanwhile, Russia both exports and imports products, Sergey Dankvert noted, adding that exports exceeded imports by 100,000 tons.

MOSCOW, April 4. /TASS/. Russia’s meat exports reached 650,000 tons in 2022, Head of the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance Sergey Dankvert said at a meeting with Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.

"It is safe to say that Russia is the largest food producer. It is currently a major exporter of grain, a major exporter of meat, with meat exports [having reached - TASS] 650,000 tons for the first time ever," he said.

Meanwhile, Russia both exports and imports products, Dankvert noted, adding that exports exceeded imports by 100,000 tons. Speaking about grain exports, he said that Russia is the largest supplier of those products, working with 140 countries.

https://tass.com/economy/1599329

Further details:

The whole world will line up for Russian food, by Kirill Strelnikov for RIANOVOSTI. 04.05.2023.

At a meeting with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, the head of the Rosselkhoznadzor, Sergei Dankvert, without much fanfare, announced a record increase in meat exports from Russia.

Against the backdrop of immortal myths that Russia "stuck in 1913" mainly imports meat, our meat exports last year exceeded imports by 100,000 tons, which was a record figure over the past five years. These figures finally fix the turn in the global food market in favor of Russia, which was indicated by the results of record harvests and grain exports from the country in 2022, as we recently wrote about in our review.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture , over the past year, Russia increased the export of beef by ten percent, and poultry meat - by one and a half times. Since 2017, the physical volume of poultry meat sales abroad has more than doubled, and revenue - 4.7 times. Experts note that meat imports to Russia are steadily declining and have virtually no impact on the domestic market.

At the same time, key players in the food market say that these figures are far from the limit, and Russia has every opportunity to produce and export much more. At the same time, the US and EU countries , which on paper heroically tore the Russian economy to shreds and whose anti-Russian sanctions work perfectly, show a completely different picture.

For example, according to fresh data from the US Department of Agriculture, the number of cattle in the United States decreased by three percent last year alone, which is the lowest figure in the last eight years. In the EU last year, beef production fell by 2.4 percent and pork by 5.6 percent, and meat imports are expected to jump sharply to replace the failure in the domestic market.

Against the backdrop of skyrocketing prices for electricity and fertilizers in Europe (which were mostly supplied from Russia), the situation will inevitably worsen - according to the most cautious forecasts, the production of the same beef in the EU by the end of the year may decrease by at least another two percent.

This is happening in parallel with the increasingly worsening epidemiological situation in agriculture in the US and the EU. Right now, an epidemic of an unknown livestock virus is raging in the States, which is extremely contagious to humans as well. According to some reports , the carrier of this virus is half of the total number of cattle in America.

African swine fever and bird flu are rampant in Europe and the United States, causing the destruction of more than 100 million birds.

Unlike Western countries, in recent years, Russia has done a lot of work to prevent the spread of dangerous animal diseases, including intensive digitalization of production and an increase in the level of safety at agricultural enterprises, due to which the losses from diseases stably remain at the level of statistical error and do not affect production volumes.

At yesterday's meeting with the workers of the Tulazheldormash plant in Tula , Vladimir Putin  said that the fears voiced after 2014 of being left without the necessary range of food did not come true and that "our agriculture entered the free market with its products and turned out to be higher in quality."

However, Western countries do not sit still and are actively looking for ways to defeat Russia on the food front.

In particular, an information campaign promoting "alternative protein" is in full swing in the West. Behind this coquettish name are various worms and insects that, in the dreams of Western agricultural producers losing their positions, will be able to replace normal meat on the people's table. In the US and the EU, the startup market is pumping up with all its might, promising to feed the whole world with worms, and regulators are urgently changing the legislative framework.

For example, earlier this year, the EU approved the free retail sale of two types of "food" insects - flour beetle larvae and house crickets, which are offered in powder, paste, frozen and dried form. According to manufacturers, worms and insects are no worse than ordinary meat, and most importantly, they save the planet from greenhouse gases. In the near future, the EU plans to approve eight more species of insects for human consumption.

However, for some reason, there is no excitement about "alternative" meat from potential buyers on the world market, on the contrary, more and more countries are increasing imports of real meat from Russia: for example, last year China increased the export of Russian poultry meat by 11 percent , Saudi Arabia - by 59, Kazakhstan - by 42. Exports to the UAE more than tripled , more than doubled to Belarus , Azerbaijan , Bahrain , Ghana and Angola.

Against the backdrop of forecasts about the growth of the world's population by 2030 to nine billion people who need affordable, high-quality and normal food, one can assume who will end up in a long queue: to the US and the EU for worms or to Russia for organic meat, milk and grains.

https://ria.ru/20230405/rossiya-1863002304.html

I think Russia has plenty of potential for raising livestock. Especially the indoor types like chicken and pork.

The main issue with Russian agriculture is it still has a high dependency on foreign seed imports from unfriendly countries. And the same is also true for livestock. A lot of breeder animals are imported.

They are working that out since 2014.
A lot has changed, and that changes speed up.

Russia has overtaken the United States in the production of mineral fertilizers, 04.27.2023.

The head of the RAPU Guryev said that Russia has overtaken the United States in the production of mineral fertilizers.

MOSCOW, April 27 - RIA Novosti. Russia has overtaken the United States in the production of mineral fertilizers, Andrey Guryev, president of the Russian Fertilizer Producers Association, said during a working meeting with President Vladimir Putin.

"Over the past ten years, we have increased production by 40 percent - up to 55 million tons - of all types of fertilizers. We have overtaken the United States, India in production and today we are the largest producer in the world after China. This is really a huge achievement," the head of RAPU said.

According to Guryev, Russia is the largest exporter of mineral fertilizers in the world. So, in 2021, the volume of supplies amounted to 37-38 million tons, the next year there was a slight drop due to the introduction of international sanctions, he explained.

"All this became possible thanks to the largest investments that have been made over the past ten years. In 2013, a new investment cycle began, 1.8 trillion rubles were invested. We paid more than 600 billion rubles in taxes alone. In 2022, we paid about 200 billion rubles in taxes , which is also a record for our industry,” said the president of the association.

The head of the RAPU also stressed that over the past decade, Russia has provided one third of the entire growth in the production of mineral fertilizers in the world. About 70 percent of exports go to friendly countries, Guriev summed up.

The head of state, in turn, thanked the manufacturers for the work done and expressed hope for the implementation of all plans for the development of the industry.

"We will definitely work on this in all areas: in the North, the Far East , and the south of the country. I hope that the Industry Development Strategy for the next five years <...> all these plans will be implemented," Putin said .

In January, the government decided to increase the quota for the export of mineral fertilizers, which is valid until May 31, by almost 0.5 million tons. As a result, its total volume will exceed 12 million tons. This measure should allow producers to export unclaimed leftovers of finished products, provided that the needs of the domestic market are fully met.

https://ria.ru/20230427/udobreniya-1868178898.html

A word of the records.
Fertilizer production is heavy consumption of natural gas in the process.
Chemical plants specializing in its production are among the biggest purchasers of gas on an entire economic scale.
For example, in Poland, the sole Azoty Group consumes approx. 10% of the entire gas demand.
That is why Russia, and other countries having an access to inexpensive and stable gas supply, will always be a major player here. Like Belarus, which is giant fertilizers hub considering it's scale.

How large retailers are developing a culture of Russian wine consumption, 05.15.2023.

Domestic wine is becoming more and more confident in retail: the assortment is expanding, the quality remains at a high level, and customers are offered exclusive positions.

What kind of wine is drunk in Russia

The popularity of domestic wines continues to grow every year. According to the data provided by representatives of the Pyaterochka retail chain, in 2022, sales of Russian-made wine throughout Russia grew by 16% in physical terms year-on-year and by 22% in ruble terms. In Pyaterochka, domestic drinks account for more than half of the total turnover of wine, and they account for 40% of the total range of alcoholic beverages.

The answer to the question about the reasons for the growth can be found in current research. Thus, in the August 2022 Romir survey, 40% of respondents note an acceptable price, 22% - the pleasant taste of wine, and 20% - its good quality.

Due to climatic conditions, Russians more often prefer red wines: according to Pyaterochka, they account for up to 60% of turnover. Further, 35% of the turnover is white wines, another 5% is rosé. It is curious that in St. Petersburg consumers more often than in other regions choose fortified wines - their sales in the region are on average 12% higher than in other regions. At the same time, the demand for Russian sparkling wines is growing steadily throughout the country. Compared to 2021, in 2022 it increased by 20%.

Among the latest consumption trends, Anastasia Zavyalova, manager in the Wine category of the Pyaterochka retail chain in the North-West, notes that in addition to sparkling and rosé wines, there are also wines of the Bio category - that is, made using a sparing amount of preservatives. Riesling, sauvignon blanc, pinot noir and autochthonous varieties (growing only in a particular region) were named among the varieties that are gaining popularity.

Five years in the vineyards

The boom in the development of Russian winemaking began in 2018. At that time, a draft federal law “On viticulture and winemaking” was developed, which includes state support measures, and Roskachestvo, together with the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Agriculture, launched the annual “Wine Guide of Russia” - the largest Russian study of wine products and a rating of the best wines by category.

There are nine wine regions in the country. Every year they increase production volumes, while a breakthrough growth occurred in 2022. This is due not only to the current geopolitical situation, but also to the fact that last year turned out to be generous in terms of harvest and was considered very good by the standards of winemakers. According to the results of 2022, the volume of wine production amounted to about 600 million decaliters, said Alexei Plotnikov, Executive Director of the Association of Winegrowers and Winemakers of Russia (AVVR), at the opening of the Days of Russian Wines campaign aimed at supporting producers of quality wine and introducing consumers to it.

“If in 2018, when the “Wine Guide of Russia” was launched, about 800 units of Russian wine of various denominations were produced, today there has been a tenfold increase, and several thousand names of Russian wine have already been registered in the Unified State Automated Information System,” said the deputy head of ANO Rossiyskaya quality system” Elena Saratseva at the opening of the “Days of Russian Wines”.

In addition, climate change entails the expansion of vineyards in uncharacteristic regions. Thus, AVVR experts note that wine-making projects are developing in the Moscow region, where there is its own association of viticulturists and winemakers, as well as in Voronezh, Samara, and Saratov.

The need to expand the wine-growing territories along the chain is created by the growing demand from the population and the increasing demands from the retail side. Now about 100 thousand hectares of land are used in the country for vineyards. But in order to balance demand, it is necessary to reach the mark of 300-350 thousand hectares, says Alexey Plotnikov. This is the aim of the programs that are being developed by AVVR, which has as its goal the unification of wineries. The expansion process is certainly not fast: according to current plans, by 2030 the current 100 thousand hectares will increase by 35%.

The road to the consumer

If the wine guide was created by Roskachestvo in order to increase interest in Russian wine and popularize the best examples of domestic winemaking, then the All-Russian campaign "Days of Russian Wines" is responsible for the practical acquaintance of the consumer with the drink. It takes place twice a year: in spring, the wines of the previous harvest year go on sale, and in the fall - young wine. In the spring of 2023, the range of wines was especially interesting, as it was the result of a successful previous year.

The campaign is being held for the tenth time and covers most of the country's largest chains. This spring it started on April 11 and will last until May 31. For the first time, the grand opening of the "Days of Russian Wines" took place in Moscow and St. Petersburg. In the northern capital, the ceremony was held at the flagship store of the Pyaterochka retail chain with the participation of representatives of Roskachestvo, Rosselkhozbank , the Association of Winegrowers and Winemakers of Russia , as well as market experts. “We note a continuing trend towards an increase in the share of Russian wine in the sales of the category, and our chain is no exception,” said Dmitry Artamonov, commercial director of the North-West territory of Pyaterochka. “We focus on exclusive brands that we create together with the largest winemakers in Russia.”

For buyers, the action is an opportunity to get acquainted with different samples of Russian wines and form their attitude towards domestic producers. For retail chains, this is a way to draw attention to Russian wines and assess the demand for further development of the category.

To simplify the choice for its guests, Pyaterochka, together with wine experts, has developed a guide with a map of wine regions and recommendations for choosing wine for the corresponding gastronomy especially for the action.

Bets are made

Large networks, seeing the potential of the Russian wine market, are interested in the constant development of the assortment and in working with the pricing policy. Exclusive trademarks (ETMs) allow you to keep a low price for quality wines not only on the days of promotions, but also on an ongoing basis.

According to Dmitry Artamonov, a wine check at Pyaterochka in St. Petersburg is about 450 rubles, and in smaller regions it can differ by 10% down. However, the ratio of Russian and imported wine in sales remains unchanged: the former, as mentioned above, wins in terms of volume. And although winemakers talk about an increase in demand, including for wines in the price category of 800 rubles. and above, the wines of the medium and medium-low price segments still remain the sales driver.

Pyaterochka develops exclusive trademarks jointly with major Russian manufacturers. Wines in the high price segment occupy a small share of the assortment, the chain focuses on wines in the range from 300 to 450 rubles. Of the 40% of Russian wine on the chain's shelves, more than half (58%) comes from ETM. Prices for wines under ETM are usually 5-15% lower than for brand names. But this is due only to the cost that the manufacturer lays in the promotion of its own brand.

“The share of Russian wine sales at Pyaterochka may grow from the current 55% to 70% in the next three to five years. Here we are very strongly connected with the presence of the product itself. According to our expectations, sales will grow only with the growth of wine-growing territories,” says Artamonov.

Meanwhile, the incentive for expanding territories for winemakers is great not only due to increased demand and the potential opportunity to increase their share on the shelf of Russian stores (currently Roskachestvo calls the figure 55% and talks about the possibility of increasing the presence of domestic wines to 80%). Another driver for increasing the area of ​​vineyards is the discussed strategy to increase the export of Russian wine, the main direction for which should be China.

https://www.rbc.ru/neweconomy/news/645cefd49a7947351f319356?utm_source=rbc&utm_medium=main&utm_campaign=870501-645cefd49a7947351f319356

Simple amazing.

Putin: despite all sanctions, agricultural exports amounted to $41.6 billion, 05.18.2023.

President Vladimir Putin, during a meeting on the progress of spring field work, said that Russia provides itself with all the main types of food. For grain, according to the head of state, this figure was 185.4%. Vladimir Putin stressed that, despite all the sanctions, agricultural exports amounted to $41.6 billion. In the same year, Russia is going to export 55-60 million tons of grain.

“I would like to note that, in general, the Russian agro-industrial complex shows a very positive trend. Thus, according to the results of last year, the index of agricultural production amounted to 110.2%. A record grain harvest was harvested - almost 158 ​​million tons," the president said.

The head of state added that the figure is a record for the entire modern history of Russia. According to the President, grain exports in 2023 will exceed 55 million tons. “As before, our country is one of the key suppliers of agro-industrial products in the world. And we have proven ourselves to be a reliable, predictable partner,” Mr. Putin said.

He also stressed that Russia has achieved self-sufficiency in all basic types of food. For grain, the figure is 185.4%, for meat - 101.6%, for fish - 153%, for vegetable oil - 211%, sugar - 103.2%. Indicators for vegetables (89.2%) and milk (85.7%) do not reach the 100% barrier.

https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/5988174

Putin says China is promising for Russia in terms of soybean exports, 05.18.2023.

China is interested in buying soybeans from Russia, the country is favorable to Russian producers and is ready to accept a large amount of production, it is necessary to develop this direction, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

On Thursday (18), at a meeting on the progress of agricultural work in the European spring, following the report of the governor of the Amur region (Far East of Russia, bordering China) Vasily Orlov, Putin noted that there is "a huge market for soybeans, simply colossal" near the region.

"Our friends in China are very friendly towards our producers, and in this sense they are ready to accept a very large amount [of production]. We just need to develop [...] Is a very promising direction, very. They will gladly accept any volume we produce", the Russian president said.

He stressed that this is not only due to the fact that Russia and China have good, friendly and strategic relations, but also because they benefit from it.

"It is also profitable, because transportation costs almost nothing. It is simply advantageous for our partners. And it is profitable for us. We need to develop faster, work more efficiently," Putin noted.

Yandex Translate from Portuguese

https://sputniknewsbrasil.com.br/20230518/putin-diz-que-china-e-promissora-para-russia-em-termos-de-exportacoes-de-soja-28889828.html

Russia-Saudi agri-trade jumps, 05.21.2023.

The two countries aim to boost annual turnover to $5 billion.

The volume of mutual trade in agricultural and food products between Russia and Saudi Arabia doubled between January and April, according to the Russian Ministry of Agriculture.

The statement was made following a meeting of the ministry’s head, Dmitry Patrushev, with the governor of the Saudi General Food Security Authority, Ahmad Al-Faris.

“This year, the positive dynamics continue, while in four months the volume of mutual trade has already more than doubled,” the statement read.

The Russian ministry reported that trade turnover in agricultural and food products reached record highs in 2022. About 70% of that trade was in grain, and exports of Russian meat products have also been growing, it added.

Russian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Sergey Kozlov had previously said there was plenty of room for growth in the two countries’ trade. The turnover amounted to about $1.75 billion in 2022, with Moscow and Riyadh aiming to boost annual trade to $5 billion, he noted.

In March, Saudi Arabia joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), which is led by China and Russia. Riyadh has also officially applied to join the BRICS group of emerging countries, with the bloc expected to decide on the Gulf nation’s admittance later this year. The potential membership could result in good prospects for the kingdom’s economic cooperation and trade with the BRICS states, according to Kozlov.

https://www.rt.com/business/576568-russia-saudi-trade-brics/

Kiko wrote:Putin says China is promising for Russia in terms of soybean exports, 05.18.2023.

......

https://sputniknewsbrasil.com.br/20230518/putin-diz-que-china-e-promissora-para-russia-em-termos-de-exportacoes-de-soja-28889828.html

For me, this soy issue is nothing more than a letter of intent. I can't see Russia coming close to being a relevant supplier of soybeans. I don't think it's even possible to drastically increase production since it's a hot climate crop. Here in Brazil it is planted in the cerrado (equivalent to the African savannah, although it is not the same thing).

Some numbers from Brazilian agriculture can be a benchmark for Russian agriculture.
-Agribusiness exports totaled US$ 159.09 billion in 2022, up 32% over the previous year
-Grain harvest is estimated at 313 million tons driven by soy
-Soybean production in Brazil in 2022/23 should be 155 million tons, says consultancy


Russia has technology and a huge amount of land available to boost current numbers, which in my view are quite timid when compared to the potential that can be achieved.
Even more so considering that the "hungry" Asian market is on your side.