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Russian Agriculture Ministry projects wheat harvest of up to 78 mln tonnes for 2019

In case of favorable conditions the forecast may be raised to 80 mln tonnes, the ministry said

MOSCOW, March 5. /TASS/. Russia’s Agriculture Ministry expects wheat harvest to reach 75-78 mln, and probably even 80 mln tonnes in 2019.

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"According to the forecast of the Russian Agriculture Ministry, wheat harvest will be 75-78 mln tonnes in 2019, an increase of at least 4% compared with last year. Meanwhile, in case of favorable conditions the forecast may be raised to 80 mln tonnes," the ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

This year’s grain harvest has been also confirmed at 118 mln tonnes (+5% against 2018), which will satisfy the requirements of the domestic market with a concurrent increase in exports of primary produce and processed products meeting the target envisioned by the federal project ‘Export of agriculture products’.

According to the data provided by the national statistics service Rosstat, Russian farmers harvested 113.25 mln tonnes of grain in 2018, and 135.4 mln tonnes in 2017.

The project ‘Export of agriculture products’ is targeted at boosting exports of agricultural produce from $25.9 bln in 2018 to $45 bln by the end of 2024.

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