Russia becoming a leading world food supplier – Agriculture Ministry

Russia will soon become one of the world’s 10 leading exporters of agricultural products in the near future, according to Agriculture Minister Dmitry Patrushev.

“The current dynamics of foreign trade suggests that in the medium term Russia is able to enter the list of the world’s top ten exporters of agricultural goods,” he said, adding that the country is already among the top three major suppliers when it comes to some sectors.

According to the minister, Russian producers managed to expand into a number of strategically important markets in 2018. The surge was reportedly due to the growth of grain, fish, and meat exports.

“China, Morocco, Japan, Singapore, Serbia, and Turkey is not the full list of countries. Now we may export fish, honey, plant feed to Morocco; meat products – to Japan, Singapore, Turkey, and Kuwait,” Patrushev said.

China is reportedly set to become one of the major importers of Russian poultry and dairy products. The first cargos of poultry were shipped recently, while dairy shipments are scheduled for the near future.

“So far, Chinese authorities have granted export permission to 10 Russian enterprises, vowing to add to the list 23 producers by the end of the year,” Patrushev said.

Boosting sales of agricultural products abroad is currently one of the top-priority tasks for the country. According to a directive by Russian President Vladimir Putin, exports in the sector are set to grow to US$45 billion by 2024. In 2018, the country’s farmers exported $25.8 billion worth of agricultural produce, up nearly 20 percent from the previous year when exports totaled $20.7 billion.

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