Development dominants and drivers of the Central Black Earth macroregion were discussed at the RUSSIA EXPO
On June 25 at the International RUSSIA EXPO, the growth points of the agro-industrial complex of the Central Black Earth region were discussed. Deputy Minister of Agriculture Andrei Razin took part in the plenary session "Space of the Future: Central Black Earth Macroregion", where he outlined the main financial and economic indicators, achievements and prospects for the development of the macroregion until 2030.
Today, the Black Earth region, which includes 9 subjects — Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kursk, Lipetsk, Orel, Tambov, Tula and Ryazan regions - is the leader in sunflower oil production and ranks first in wheat and barley exports. The Central Black Earth region accounts for 22% of Russia's total agricultural output.
This year, the President has set ambitious goals for the country's agro-industrial complex to increase production by 2030. Andrei Razin emphasized that in order to achieve them, the subjects of the Central Black Earth regions need to increase the production of priority groups of goods in 5 years. Including grain and legumes up to 36 million tons, oilseeds up to 9.5 million tons, vegetable oil up to 3.7 million tons, as well as meat, dairy products and sugar.
State support plays an important role in the realization of the set tasks. Currently, there is a whole list of measures that are provided for plant growers: preferential lending, subsidies for the purchase of seed production, planting of orchards and nurseries, purchase of agricultural machinery and others.
Also, within the framework of the Macroregion Day, the deputy minister held a meeting on the preparation for harvesting in the Black Earth Zone of the CFD. The participants discussed the provision of agrarians with the necessary material and technical resources and their availability. In turn, the regions confirmed their readiness for the harvesting campaign. In conclusion, Andrei Razin reminded the representatives of the subjects of the need to comply with fire safety. It is important to conduct preventive measures with the participation of rural administrations and ensure active collaboration with the Ministry of Emergency Situations (EMERCOM). The speakers at the plenary session included Olga Medvedeva, Deputy Governor of the Belgorod region; Sergei Kurbatov, Deputy Governor of the Lipetsk region; Sergei Starodubtsev, Acting Deputy Governor of the Kursk region; Alyona Sytova, Deputy Head of the Tambov region — Minister of Agriculture of the Tambov region; Oleg Mosolov, Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Voronezh region; and Maksim Zudin, member of the Management Board of Cherkizovo Group of Companies.
The participants of the meeting cited the development indicators of the regions they represented, emphasizing that despite negative external factors, agrarians manage to increase production volumes.
Olga Medvedeva, Deputy Governor of the Belgorod region, said that even taking into account the fact that the region is under constant bombardment, it has managed to multiply its development indicators in recent years.
"The region's GRP has grown from almost 1 trillion rubles in 2020 to almost 1 trillion 400 billion in 2023. The annual volume of investments showed growth from 168.8 billion rubles in 2021 to 212.2 billion rubles in 2023. The volume of shipped goods of own production showed a three-year dynamic of 386 billion rubles. At the same time, in 2023 iron ore mining amounted to 95.7 million tons, and production of iron ore concentrate 32.5 million tons," Olga Medvedeva cited the data.
In turn, Sergei Starodubtsev, Acting Deputy Governor of Kursk region, emphasized that the main task for the region is to increase the welfare of its residents, while the cost of the food basket for citizens is among the top 10 cheapest in Russia.
"The Kursk region is a combination of industry and agriculture, where manufacturing industries occupy a significant share. The area of cultivated land exceeds 1.7 million hectares, and fertile black soils form the basis of arable land. Thanks to these conditions, we harvest record grain crops and establish a feed base for livestock development. The Kursk region is one of the key suppliers of sugar and mushrooms in Russia," said Sergei Starodubtsev, Acting Deputy Governor of Kursk region.
Alyona Sytova, Deputy Head of the Tambov region — Minister of Agriculture of the region, not only spoke about the achievements of the region, but also shared her plans for the future. Thus, among the key projects to be implemented in Tambov region are the development of new processing industries that will create new jobs, increase exports and provide additional tax revenues to the budget, the creation of Russian varieties of popular crops that will ensure import substitution of planting material, as well as the creation and development of the International Centre for Food Security.
The Tambov region is among the top 10 subjects of the Russian Federation and among the top 5 in the CFD in terms of grain, sugar beet and soybean production. In 2023, agrarians set historical records by harvesting more than 5 million tons of grain and leguminous crops, almost 6 million tons of sugar beet and almost 440 thousand tons of soybeans.
In his speech, Maksim Zudin, member of Cherkizovo's Management Board, highlighted the challenges that the company is currently coping with. The key ones are traditionally the shortage of personnel, the need to import replacement of transport, seeds, vaccines, and high interest rates on commercial loans. Maksim Zudin did not ignore the opportunities that are opening up for the company. He mentioned solvent demand, available knowledge and technologies, as well as administrative support from the authorities.
The International RUSSIA EXPO showcases the most important achievements of the country in one place. Throughout the Exposition, cultural events, a rich business and educational program await the guests. The expositions of 89 Russian regions, leading federal agencies, corporations and public organizations are presented to the visitors. More than 16 million people have already visited the Exposition. The International RUSSIA EXPO takes place on the territory of VDNH in Moscow from November 4 to July 8.
The first event to be held at the Russia National Centre, which is being established by the order of President Vladimir Putin, will be the International Science Fiction Symposium and Exhibition "Inventing the Future". The symposium will take place from November 4 to 6.
Tomorrow, the International RUSSIA EXPO will conclude its work. From November 2023 to July 2024, it was visited by more than 18 million guests.
