World meat industry news

The economic sanctions of the European Union will affect the agro-industrial complex to a lesser extent, Deputy Prime Minister of Belarus Aleksandr Subbotin told the Belarus 1 TV channel on 27 June, BelTA informs.

“As to the agro-industrial complex, sanctions will affect it to a lesser extent. The land is ours, we have learned to work on it. We will have to work a bit harder. Maybe, we might have to adjust our export card, but I think the aftermath for the agricultural sector will not be critical, although I would not want it at all,” Aleksandr Subbotin said.

Speaking about the country's major partner – the Russian Federation, the deputy premier noted that Belarus' agricultural exports to this country are worth almost $4.5 billion. “Our products are known and appreciated there because of the quality, environmental friendliness, taste, common approaches to the production and preparation of food,” Aleksandr Subbotin added.

The Russian Federation's requirements to product quality and specifications are tough but reasonable, the deputy prime minister said. He noted that the restrictions on the part of Russia do not offend but, but on the contrary “this motivates us to work harder and strive for even better quality, which allowed us to establish presence in 116 markets and we sell almost $6 billion in foodstuffs worldwide, including to China, where the requirements are even stricter. Restrictions are constantly appearing, but this is a normal process. We are addressing claims and we are trying to have restrictions lifted,” he said.

Belarus' trade with China is quite vibrant. Since 2015, supplies to this country have increased 19 times. In 2020, products worth almost $260 million were sold there. However, for China, this figure is insignificant, Aleksandr Subbotin said. According to him, China's domestic demand is growing, European consumption trends are gaining ground there, cheese, chilled meat and steaks are growing in popularity.

“We are closely monitoring and responding to all these trends, and trying to expand our product line and focus on those products that are mass-produced in our country (yoghurts, sour cream, cottage cheese have carved out their niche in China), and, of course, to beef up supplies of the products that have already become established in the Chinese retail landscape, including dry dairy products, beef, packaged milk. Last year there was a boom in the consumption of rapeseed oil. We adjusted and started selling more of it to this market,” the deputy premier said.

Speaking about the impact of the sanctions on the potash industry, he noted that in addition to the Western world, there are also the East, the Middle East, China, and the Russian Federation. “Naturally, these flows will be redirected there. We are busy working to get the necessary certificates wherever we still do not have them and to penetrate new markets,” he said.

He went on saying that sanctions are a bad and wrong thing. “Probably, imposing sanctions on the people and the country located in the center of Europe in the 21st century is monstrous, looks like some kind of feudalism. No matter what some say (that the sanctions target the state and certain individuals), these are ordinary people, consumers who will find themselves on the receiving end of these sanctions,” he said.