MOSCOW, August 6. /TASS/. Russia has increased agricultural exports by 2.6-fold in 10 years of food embargo, while agricultural production growth amounted to 33.2%, the press service of the Russian Ministry of Agriculture told TASS.

In August 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin imposed a food embargo, banning the supply of meat and dairy products, fish, fruits and nuts from the United States, the European Union, Canada, Australia, and Norway.

"This period became a milestone for the Russian agro-industrial complex, which showed significant growth in production, widespread introduction of advanced technologies, and ensured our country's leadership in the global food market in many key areas," the Agriculture Ministry said.

Thus, for 2014-2023, the actual growth of agricultural production amounted to 33.2%, for food products - 42.9%. At the same time, agricultural exports increased by 2.6-fold in 10 years and by the end of 2023 will amount to $43.5 bln, compared to $17.1 bln in 2013. "Today, Russia exports food to more than 160 countries and is the world leader in the supply of wheat, peas, barley, oilseed flax, frozen fish, and occupies a leading position in sunflower oil and a number of other products," the ministry said.

The Ministry noted that the dynamic development of the Russian agro-industrial complex is the result of systematic decisions of the state to protect and support Russian producers, as well as to boost certain sectors. In particular, funding for the activities of the State Program for Agricultural Development has increased 2.2-fold, from 198.1 bln rubles ($2.26 bln) in 2013 to 442.6 bln rubles ($5.06 bln) in 2023.

"Achieving self-sufficiency in many respects made it possible to change the development model of the agro-industrial complex from import-substitution to export-oriented. In 2013, our country imported 2.5-fold more food than it delivered to other countries. At the same time, since 2020 Russia has been a net exporter of food - exports exceed imports, and the gap between the indicators is growing annually. Thus, according to the results of 2023, deliveries to foreign markets were 24% higher than the volume of purchases from abroad," the Ministry of Agriculture added.

According to Minister of Agriculture Oksana Lut, the recent trends represent Russia's course towards intensive development of the agricultural sector and strengthening its position as a guarantor of global food security.

"Today, we not only set ourselves with the widest range of basic food products, but also have one of the most competitive, flexible, and technological markets in the world. Russian companies are able to produce almost anything and adapt to any external conditions - this was well demonstrated by the situation in 2022-2023, when a number of foreign brands left the country. As in 2014, the vacated places were quickly occupied by local companies and consumers did not feel any changes," Luth commented.

Industry results

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, since 2014, the grain harvest has increased from 92.4 mln tons to about 150 mln tons in 2023, sugar beet - from 39.3 mln tons to 53.2 mln tons. The largest growth was shown by the oilseeds production - 2.3-fold. The potato harvest by the end of 2023 reached its maximum in the last 30 years - 8.6 mln tons, which is 1.6-fold higher than the level of 2013.

The volume of fruit and vegetable production increased 1.7-fold, reaching a record level in 2023 - 7.5 mln tons (including 1.64 mln tons - greenhouse vegetables, the harvest of which increased 2.6-fold since 2013). Fruit and berry yields increased 2.8-fold - from 0.7 mln tons to a record 1.9 mln tons by the end of 2023.

Livestock and poultry production increased by 35.6% - from 12.2 mln to 16.53 mln tons. Milk production increased by 13.2% to 33.8 mln tons.

Fishing enterprises increased the catch from 4.3 mln to 5.4 mln tons in 10 years. Significant growth was noted in the aquaculture segment - commercial fish farming increased by 2.1-fold to 402,000 tons.

The food industry is also growing in almost all areas. For example, the production of vegetable oil increased by 2.5-fold to 9.8 mln tons, meat products - by 84% to 9.8 mln tons, pasta - almost 1.5-fold to 1.5 mln tons.

The Ministry of Agriculture emphasized that the Russian cheese industry is thriving, having received a major boost after the introduction of the food embargo. Thus, cheese production has almost doubled in the last 10 years and amounted to 801,000 tons.