China has become the main importer of Russian beet pulp, replacing the European Union: market analysis.

According to preliminary data from the Sugar.ru portal, in the 2023/24 season, China became the main importer of regular granulated beet pulp from Russia, accounting for 56% of export deliveries. Turkey and Morocco took second and third place respectively, with shares of 32% and 7%. Prior to this, the main purchaser of this product, the European Union, stopped buying due to sanctions, forcing Russian producers to seek new markets, as reported by Agroinvestor magazine.

The annual production of granulated beet pulp in Russia ranges from 1.6 to 1.9 million tons. A significant portion of this volume was exported, as indicated by Vadim Gomoz, director of Sugar.ru. In the 2022/23 season, the EU included beet pulp in the list of sanctioned items, leading to a reduction in exports from 1.3 million tons in the 2021/22 season to 600 thousand tons in the following season. In response to this, Russian producers started exporting molassed beet pulp to the European Union, partially compensating for the losses. However, new customs duties on all types of beet pulp in the EU make exports there unprofitable.

China may become the main buyer of all Russian beet pulp, but high transportation costs and the distance of China from the main sugar-producing regions of Russia complicate this task. Iran and Turkey could be alternative markets, but solving this problem may take several years.

The "Prodimeks" group of companies has long been involved in the production of granulated beet pulp and since 2022 has switched to molassed beet pulp, which is popular in livestock farming due to better digestibility and higher sugar content. The main sales market for the company has become China.

The agricultural complex "Labinsky" also focuses on China, exporting more than 65 thousand tons of beet pulp annually. The company "Syukden" has almost stopped supplying to the EU since last year and redirected its exports to China.