Russia’s own production of vegetables, fruit and berries has grown. The latter are abundant on the shelves even with the onset of autumn.
As reported in the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia, at the end of August harvested 2.4 million tons of vegetables in the organized sector. Of these, 1.3 million tons were grown in the open ground and this is 21.1 percent more than the figure for the same period last year.
“The leaders in the production of ground vegetables are Astrakhan and Volgograd, Moscow, Rostov, Saratov regions, Krasnodar Krai and Kabardino-Balkar Republic”, — specified in the agrarian department.
At the same time, Russian agrarians harvested about 1.1 million tons of greenhouse products, which is one percent above the level of 2023. Of these, the harvest of tomatoes is 450.2 thousand tons, and cucumbers — 604.1 thousand tons. Traditionally, the leading regions for the production of indoor vegetables in Russia include the Lipetsk, Moscow, Kaluga and Volgograd Regions, Krasnodar and Stavropol Territories.
Financing of potato and vegetable production in Russia in 2023 amounted to 4.6 billion rubles, which is almost twice as much as a year earlier. The federal project “Development of Vegetable and Potato Growing” was launched in 2023, which allowed to increase state support for these branches of agro-industrial complex.
Berry production is growing. Thanks to new technologies and the construction of modern greenhouses, strawberries and raspberries can be seen on the shelves in early September, and blueberries are available all year round. There was a slight downturn in the construction of new greenhouses in 2023, but growth has now resumed. “In recent years, there have been many new agribusinesses in Russia. The greatest growth is observed in the southern regions of the country, such as Krasnodar Krai and Stavropol, where climatic conditions are most favorable for horticulture. Greenhouse complexes are actively developing in Central Russia, Siberia and the Far East,” Vadim Petrov, Chairman of the Public Council at Roshydromet and a member of the Russian delegation to UNESCO, told RG.
By the way, last year, more than 1.75 million tons of berries were harvested in Russia — a record harvest. Over the past 10 years, 140 thousand hectares of fruit and berry orchards have been planted in the country.
At the same time, the country wants to further reduce dependence on imported agricultural products, including fruits and berries. To reduce dependence on imports, a national project is being developed, within the framework of which a separate federal project for the development of breeding and genetics of plants and animals is planned. This was told by the Minister of Agriculture of Russia Oksana Lut at a recent meeting in Kazan, dedicated to the development of Russian breeding and seed production.
As Oksana Lut noted, according to the decree of the President of the Russian Federation, by 2030 the volume of agro-industrial complex production should increase by 25 percent, and exports — one and a half times, up to 55 billion dollars. It is important to provide the industry with technologies. The work has been underway since 2022. During this period, the Ministry of Agriculture has financed the construction of 20 breeding and seed production centers, created mainly by private business.
In the future, it is necessary to build close interaction between research institutes and seed consumers. When developing new varieties and hybrids, it is necessary to take into account the demands of agricultural producers. Also an important task is to provide the industry with qualified specialists. The Ministry of Agriculture together with universities, business, scientific institutes is developing a separate program for training of scientific personnel from school.