KAZAN, January 29. /TASS/. The National Dairy Producers Union of Russia (Soyuzmoloko) expects an increase in saleable (raw) milk production in Russia by 3-4% year on year in 2024, General Director of the Union Artyom Belov told TASS on the sidelines of the TatAgroExpo exhibition.

"I believe incremental growth of saleable milk production <…> will be about 3-4%. In absolute terms, this probably stands at <…> 850,000 metric tons. I am talking specifically about saleable milk. <…> Milk that goes to processing," Belov said.

The year of 2024 will be fairly balanced for the industry according to forecasts, with several drivers in place, he noted.

"Firstly, we predict the continuing growth in consumption of milk and dairy products. This trend started with us in 2023 and will most likely remain in 2024. This is associated in the first instance with the rise of real disposable income of households. The second good case is that we will have a serious rise in export demand," the expert said. These factors create a good base to develop production and processing, he added.