By 2030, it is expected that the volume of production in the fat and oil industry in Russia will increase to 16.1 million tons, which is 1.5 times higher than the level of 2023. This statement was made by Mikhail Maltsev, the executive director of the Fat-and-Oil Union, at the IV Fat-and-Oil Conference "Maintaining Heights: How to Sustain the Dynamics of Production and Exports."
Over the past five years, from 2018 to 2023, the volume of exports of fat-and-oil products from Russia at comparable 2020 prices has increased by 16%, while the overall volume of the country's agro-exports has grown by 9%. In 2023, 11.1 million tons of oilseed processing products were exported for a total value of $8.8 billion. The Fat-and-Oil Union forecast shows that in 2024, 12.5 million tons of these products will be supplied to foreign markets.
Maltsev noted that the production of oilseeds should reach 34.7 million tons by 2030, exceeding the previous year's record harvest of 29.2 million tons by more than 5 million tons. The production of fat-and-oil products will also increase to 32.6 million tons compared to 25.1 million tons in 2023. Experts believe that it is necessary to increase production by approximately another 5 million tons, which is almost 15%. Maltsev believes that this is a modest and not overly ambitious task that Russia is likely to be able to solve.
Specialists from the Federal Center for Agro-Exports agree that the export of fat-and-oil products will actively develop by 2030 and will remain one of the factors driving the supply of agricultural products. Deputy Director of the center, Evgeny Zaytsev, emphasized during the conference that the share of raw material exports will decrease in favor of products with high added value, primarily vegetable oils.
The expert emphasized that global trends in the world market include a general slowdown in the processing of oilseeds, a decrease in demand for palm oil, and an increase in demand for biodiesel.
According to IKAR's forecasts, sunflower production in Russia in the current agricultural year will amount to 17.3 million tons, taking into account the spring harvest. IKAR believes that the area under soybeans will continue to expand.
The Ministry of Agriculture of Russia is determined to maintain support measures for exporters of fat-and-oil products, including the possibility of returning to providing preferential investment loans. This was announced during the conference by Maxim Markovich, the director of the Department of International Cooperation and Development of Agricultural Exports at the Ministry of Agriculture.
He noted that this year, the Ministry of Agriculture has already provided support to exporters in the fat-and-oil industry. "At the moment, new applications for credit funds amounting to 150 billion rubles are under consideration... Compared to last year, the Ministry of Agriculture supported exporters of fat-and-oil products with a credit portfolio amounting to about 145 billion rubles," Markovich said.
