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Eye on the East: Moscow brewers saw major boom in malt beer exports to China in 2018

China ranks 27th in terms of exports of food products and feed from Moscow

MOSCOW, February 22. / TASS /. Malt beer manufactured in Moscow has become one of the Russian capital’s most popular export products to China and when compared to 2017, its export skyrocketed by over 90% by end of 2018, the Moscow Department of Investment and Industrial Policy told TASS on Friday.

"The Moscow food industry’s most popular product exported to China in 2018 was malt beer in 10-liter jugs or smaller, and its export amounted to $14.6 million, which is 92.9% more than in 2017," the service told TASS.

According to the department chief, Alexander Prokhorov, today in Moscow there are 60 large and mid-size enterprises, many actively working together with China. "The volume of food export from Moscow to China in 2018 amounted to nearly $30 million, which is 9% higher than in 2017. China ranks 27th in terms of exports of food products and feed from Moscow," said Prokhorov.

In 2018, among other popular products that Moscow industrial enterprises had exported to China were leftover grains ($2.2 million, + 233.5% by 2017), wheat flour ($1.4 million, -5.7% by 2017), soybeans ($1.3 million, -37.8% by 2017), pine nuts ($600,000, -71.1% by 2017), and waffles ($600,000, -7.4% year-on-year to 2017).

Meat export plans

In addition, the agency said that Moscow meat manufacturers are interested in their products direct access to the Chinese market. Currently, there are no such deliveries. The service noted that in order to start direct supplies, it is essential to hammer out the conditions with China on ASF (African swine fever) virus region by region in Russia, as well as to approve the list of Russian enterprises with a high degree of bioprotection, which will be selectively certified as exporters.

"Direct access to the Chinese market will allow Russian producers to at least double the average price, to $1.5/kg, and in the long run increase supplies to 150,000 tonnes. The Moscow-based Cherkizovo meat processing plant plans to export 30,000 tonnes, 1/5 of the entire export volume. This way, Russian poultry and meat exports to China will reach $200-250 million," the department projects. According to the press service, more than 350,000 tonnes of sausages and deli meats and about 100 tonnes of meat products are produced annually in Moscow.

"Every year, exports between Moscow and China are actively developing, even in the field of agriculture. Moscow’s products are in demand in China, and producers in the Russian capital are interested in their products being represented in China," said Kirill Ilyichev, General Director of the Moscow Export Center.