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In August, a bill was submitted to the State Duma to extend zero VAT on the sale and import of breeding stock. Recall that the exemption is due to expire at the end of this year. But the authors of the initiative believe that it should be extended until December 31, 2025, primarily in order to achieve the country's food security.

The explanatory note to the bill states that there is a shortage of highly productive breeding animals in Russia. The import of breeding young animals is steadily growing: for example, in 2021, 50.8 thousand heads were imported into the country, which is 17.6 thousand heads higher than in 2016.

The performance indicators of cows of imported breeds are much higher compared to domestic breeds, the authors of the amendments are sure. “According to expert estimates, the termination of the VAT tax exemption for cattle will lead to a decrease in investments in the expansion of production to 5.3 billion rubles (with a potential VAT rate of 20%), and will reduce the ability of medium and small enterprises to rely on high-quality genetics,” – legislators approve. And they believe that the extension of the exemption will help companies free up funds for the development of breeding farms, as well as create a competitive base for breeding products.

But each initiative must be considered from different perspectives. An alternative point of view is shared by Aleksey Tikhomirov, Candidate of Economic Sciences, Senior Researcher at the Laboratory of Economics and Organization of Animal Husbandry of the Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution "Federal Research Center for Animal Husbandry - VIZH named after Academician L. K. Ernst." According to him, maintaining the zero rate will have a negative impact on the competitiveness of domestic producers. “In fact, we are talking about preferences for foreign companies and their Russian partners that are engaged in the sale of genetic resources for animal husbandry. Unfortunately, this measure will not contribute to the development of breeding in the country and expanded reproduction in the industry,” he complains.

Moreover, the expert is sure that the presented figures require justification. “It is necessary to compare the cost of domestic products and imports, plus take into account such indicators as productive longevity and calf yield. Often, livestock imported from abroad is poorly adapted to our conditions: there are cases when it does not realize the genetic potential of productivity, which the seller claims,” the source says.

The experts of "Vizh" do not call for a complete rejection of imported livestock. “Today, the industry cannot fully provide itself with the necessary breeding stock. As a result, we are forced to import livestock from abroad. So, according to our estimates, based on data from the Federal Customs Service of Russia, the share of imported breeding cattle in 2021 reached 36.3%,” says Alexei Tikhomirov.

In turn, Yegor Lebedko, Professor of the Department of Animal Feeding, Private Animal Science and Processing of Animal Products, Bryansk State Agrarian University, Doctor of Agricultural Sciences, Academician of the International Academy of Sciences of Ecology, Human Safety and Nature, recalls: the purchase of imported livestock is a common practice that allows you to refresh the breeding herd. “We are talking about a classic technique for building a highly productive herd. But for this it is enough to purchase 50-100 heads in one farm. What happens in reality? Agroholdings buy 500-1000 heads of imported livestock at a time. And okay, if Russia did not have a worthy alternative. But after all, domestic animals are quite competitive, they are better adapted to our technologies and have higher adaptive characteristics,” he says.

Moreover, one cannot expect that foreign partners will supply their best animals to the Russian market. According to Yegor Yakovlevich, all livestock abroad is divided into categories A, B, C, D. Animals of the last, fourth category come to our country. “Thus, foreigners keep the best breeding stock for themselves. And we are offered animals with less productivity,” the expert continues.

Now let's move on to economics. According to Yegor Lebedko, until February 2022, one head of imported heifers cost an average of 160-200 thousand rubles. Thus, the acquisition of "foreigners" costs a pretty penny for farms. But if the company cannot provide expensive livestock with feed of the required quality and appropriate care, the animals will have to be slaughtered. Do I need to say that the financial losses in this case are colossal?

As for Russian animals, their purchase costs farms twice as much. “This does not mean that the quality of our livestock is lower. The price for it is connected with the peculiarities of nutrition, the lack of expensive logistics and a number of other factors. Today, excellent breeds are bred on farms - Yaroslavl, Kholmogory, black-and-white, Simmental, Ayrshire and others. And each region has its own breeding base, due to the rational use of which we can almost completely replace imported livestock,” the expert is sure.

And again a few numbers. Currently, the State Register of Breeding Achievements includes 28 breeds of dairy and 12 breeds of beef cattle approved for use on the territory of the Russian Federation. Of course, both the milk productivity of breeding cattle and the quality characteristics of raw milk in different regions of the country may differ. But the potential is high, and with the observance of technology, it can be realized, Yegor Lebedko is sure.

Alexey Tikhomirov continues the topic: “Today, breeds adapted to modern milk production technology are bred in the country. A number of enterprises have achieved great success in selection and breeding work, reaching the world level of productivity. Their breeding material is in high demand within the country. First of all, breeding farms of the Leningrad, Voronezh and Kaluga regions should be attributed to such enterprises. There are also good examples in a number of other regions.”

Farms, in which the actual milk yield per cow is 10-10.5 thousand kilograms of milk per lactation, are also in the Bryansk region - in fact, this is a European indicator! Yegor Lebedko tells about some of them: “The Niva breeding farm is famous for record-breaking cows with a milk yield of 21,000 to 24,000 kilograms. If we talk about quality characteristics, the fat content of milk obtained at Niva reaches 4.3%. This is a very high figure."

To determine the breeding value and purpose of animals allows grading, which is based on the assessment of milk productivity, exterior, constitution and genotype of cows. Thus, animals are classified as elite-record, elite, class I, class II. According to our interlocutor, at breeding plants and reproducers of the Bryansk region, the share of high-quality cattle is 100%. Of these, 10–15% are the elite, 85–90% are the record elite.

Yegor Lebedko believes that the main task facing the government today is to support domestic livestock breeding. Yes, the Department of Animal Husbandry and Breeding of the Ministry of Agriculture provides support to farms included in the State Breeding Register. So, about 10 thousand rubles are allocated for one breeding cow. “These gratuitous payments are a good help for enterprises,” the expert notes. However, some explanatory work related to the promotion of Russian breeding animals is also necessary. “Of course, the business itself chooses which herd to acquire – domestic or imported. But we must clearly convey the information that our cattle has a number of advantages and that investments are needed in Russian breeding and genetics, in our own breeding production,”

Aleksey Tikhomirov lists the factors hindering the development of his own breeding base. Among them are the lack of financial and human resources, the lack of highly qualified breeders, as well as the backlog in the development of the material and technical base. “Often, producers are not focused on carrying out long-term selection and breeding work and investing in this area. For them, the priority is to maximize income “here and now,” he says. The consequences of such tactics are contradictory. On the one hand, the productivity of the dairy herd is increasing in the country. On the other hand, the yield of calves and the period of productive use are reduced. Due to the fact that the reproduction and repair of the herd are not provided with their own resources, there is a need to purchase imported livestock to fill the commodity complexes.

“Another significant factor is the Holsteinization of dairy cattle breeding. Due to the unsystematic use of the Holstein breed and work with the same lines, a high level of inbreeding is observed (a popular system of mating related individuals. - Approx. "ViZh"). Today, this is a big problem in the industry, which leads to a deterioration in the reproductive qualities of livestock, a decrease in the period of productive use, an increase in pathologies of the reproductive system, metabolic disorders and diseases of the limbs,” Alexei Tikhomirov describes the situation. And he recalls that in the days of the USSR, active work was carried out in the country on the zoning of breeds according to the natural, climatic and production zones of the country. That is, for certain regions, separate breeds were recommended for breeding, specialized lines and types of animals were created.

Aleksey Tikhomirov also recalls: in addition to the modern industrial technology of milk production, focused on year-round stall keeping of animals and the organization of mono-feeding, grazing is widespread in the country in the spring and summer. This technology imposes somewhat different requirements on animals, and this aspect must be taken into account in breeding work and production organization.

There is no urgent need for mass purchase of imported livestock today, Yegor Lebedko is sure. The only exceptions are rare, exotic breeds. “For a long time, the USA, Canada, Australia, Germany, Hungary, France, Austria, and England occupied the leading positions in the pedigree cattle market. Today they demonstrate an unfriendly attitude towards us. So in the current political environment, the number of animals purchased from abroad has decreased. True, deliveries from the Republic of Belarus have increased - this state has a very good, highly productive herd. Moreover, the Belarusians carried out the Holsteinization of the Black-and-White breed, which led to an increase in its milk production,” says the academician.

Aleksey Tikhomirov is not yet ready to give forecasts for the future: “Today, supplies of breeding products from Western countries do not stop, but complications have arisen in the process of transporting livestock. This led to an increase in the cost of logistics. It is still difficult to say how the situation will develop further.”