Crop production is a strong and sustainable direction even in the face of sanctions

Under the conditions of external restrictions, crop production in Russia is a strong and sustainable direction of the agro-industrial complex. This was stated by the Minister of Agriculture Dmitry Patrushev at the plenary meeting of the All-Russian Field Day-2023. According to him, this is confirmed by the dynamics of the harvest of major agricultural crops every year. As a result, 2022 will be a record year for many positions in cereals, oilseeds, vegetables, fruits and berries. "What I can say is that many areas have been updated almost to the highest level," the minister said.

These records are the result of well-thought-out and adopted systemic decisions. In particular, the Ministry of Agriculture is actively working to increase the rate of fertilizer application per hectare: since 2017, the average rate of fertilizer application has increased from 39 kg/ha to 60.4 kg/ha by 2022 and to 65 kg/ha by 2023. forecast), planned value - 80 c/ha. A number of support measures are also provided for the replacement of agricultural machinery: Government Decree No. 1432, preferential leasing and loans, subsidies from the MFH, partial compensation of costs to agricultural producers, etc.

According to Patrushev, harvesting is currently underway in 16 regions, more than 6 million tons of grain have been collected in warehouses. The harvesting of rapeseed, potatoes and vegetables has also begun. "Our farmers have received all the necessary resources," the minister stressed. According to Interfax, he said on the sidelines of the exhibition that the Ministry of Agriculture recognized the possibility of raising the forecast for the grain harvest for 2023, but it remained at the level of 123 million tons, including 78 million tons of wheat. . “Then everything will depend on the harvest and weather conditions,” the head of the agro-industrial complex explained.

The Ministry of Agriculture is also engaged in integrated planning, Patrushev said at the meeting. The Ministry of Agriculture is now working with the districts to approve the structure of sown areas, taking into account rational crop rotation. This allows you to more accurately take into account the needs of the market, balance production and ensure acceptable profitability for farmers. In addition, together with the State Duma and the Federation Council, a number of laws in the field of land relations were adopted. “We are implementing the national program “Earth” and it seems to me quite successful. In total, in 2022-2023, we will put into circulation about 800,000 hectares. In addition, as part of digitalization, we are creating, for the first time, figures for agricultural lands of each thematic map, which will form the basis of a large federal map that everyone can use," the minister said.

In addition, the growth of production was facilitated by the renewal of reclamation systems and hydraulic structures. Patrushev said that as a result of these measures (mainly land reclamation), the Ministry of Agriculture achieved a fairly significant increase in production only on irrigated lands. Soybeans, for example, increased by an average of 73 percent, corn by an average of 70 percent, and potatoes by an average of 50 percent, with the department pointing to similar increases for outdoor vegetables.

“If we compare the average harvests of the last two five-year plans, we have increased grain production by almost 16 percent and oilseeds by about 60 percent. Therefore, we can conclude that Russian crop production has formed a certain margin of safety, which allows us to get through a very, very difficult year 2022 without any wild fluctuations, without major failures.

But systemic measures are accompanied by targeted support, since last year's record grain harvest hit the profitability of producers. “We need to address the issue of additional support. So, last season we bought 3 million tons of grain for the intervention fund <…>. Patrushev noted that 11.5 billion rubles will be allocated for subsidies in 2022-2023. Railway transport. - Well, in my opinion, this is an unprecedented measure: 40 billion rubles have been allocated for two years. Support for food producers. This money should have already been started. Also, among the support measures, I especially noted the Adjustment of export tariffs before the start of the season so that crop growers have more resources. The head of the Department of Agriculture stressed that these measures have justified themselves, and food prices have begun to rise.

According to the minister, the main task in the current conditions is to ensure that we have a solid base in the main areas of production. “Of course, this is the growth of independence from imports,” he said. State support in this area is being strengthened, measures are being taken to protect the domestic market (rules for the localization of production by foreign companies), the share of seeds of domestic selection in the share of the crop is steadily growing, and federal scientific and technical programs are being developed. keep going.

The next component of security is to accelerate the transition of farmers to domestic equipment. Patrushev said at the meeting that the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Industry and Trade have approved a program for the purchase of Russian and Belarusian tractors, which is valid until the end of this year and provides for the establishment of agreed prices.