World meat industry news

The most promising halal products for the export of the Russian agro-industrial complex are poultry meat, chocolate and beef. Andrey Dalnov, head of the Center for Industry Expertise of the Russian Agricultural Bank, spoke about this at the site of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, speaking at the session “Halal Industry: Prospects and Achievements”.

Top Muslim markets for the Russian agro-industrial complex

Halal is an Arabic word meaning "permissible". In the context of economics, this refers to goods and services that comply with religious requirements and Islamic norms. The market for such products is actively developing and presents new opportunities for businesses that are ready to adapt and meet the requirements of a growing Muslim audience. Russian products of the agro-industrial complex have a significant potential for developing exports to the markets of the countries of the Islamic world.

More than half (54%) of Russian agricultural exports in 2022 accounted for the countries of the Islamic world and amounted to $22.3 billion in monetary terms. The top 5 Muslim markets for the export of Russian food products included: Turkey ($5 billion), Iran ($4.1 billion), Kazakhstan ($3.4 billion), Egypt ($2.2 billion), Saudi Arabia ($1 billion).

Andrey Dalnov noted that the most promising Russian products exported according to Halal standards are poultry meat, chocolate, and beef. By 2025, the export of poultry meat from Russia to Muslim countries may exceed $0.5 billion, chocolate - also $0.5 billion, beef - $0.1 billion. more mature: farmers are working to improve efficiency and stabilize margins and become more competitive in comparison with producers from countries that are now leaders in food exports - the USA, the EU, Latin America.

Poultry meat

Over the past five years, poultry meat exports from Russia to Muslim countries have grown 3.5 times to $303 million. The most capacious markets in 2022 were Saudi Arabia ($156 million), Kazakhstan ($74 million), and the United Arab Emirates ( $25 million), Kyrgyzstan ($19 million), Azerbaijan ($13 million). The fastest growing supplies to Saudi Arabia (by an average of 117% per year over 5 years), the United Arab Emirates (by 66% per year from 208), Uzbekistan (by 56% per year), Jordan (by 53% per year) and Qatar (50% per year).

Russian poultry farmers will have to master the markets of Malaysia, Sudan, as well as expand supplies to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, and Oman. Another promising direction for deliveries could be Nigeria, where direct deliveries are not currently carried out, while the country is one of the largest markets on the African continent.

Chocolate

Since 2017, chocolate exports to Muslim countries from Russia have grown by 63% to $452 million. The top such countries include Kazakhstan ($202 million), Uzbekistan ($90 million), Azerbaijan ($53 million), Kyrgyzstan (45 million dollars), Tajikistan (24 million dollars). The fastest growing supplies to Uzbekistan (38% per year), Palestine (27%), Turkmenistan (24%), Kazakhstan (14%), Tajikistan (10%).

In the future, deliveries to Saudi Arabia and the UAE are possible, despite the fact that Russia's share in these markets is currently relatively low (less than 10%). It is also possible to increase the export of Russian chocolate to such Muslim countries as Malaysia, Iraq, Turkey. At the same time, certification of chocolate as a halal product is not mandatory, but rather an additional competitive advantage for Russian exporters.

Beef

Beef exports to Muslim countries have grown 14 times since 2017 and amounted to $66 million in 2022. Beef from Russia is most valued in Saudi Arabia ($33 million), Uzbekistan ($13 million), Kazakhstan ($12 million). .), Morocco ($2 million) and the United Arab Emirates ($2 million). Deliveries to Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Lebanon are growing rapidly. It is possible to increase deliveries to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Kuwait, Jordan, Uzbekistan, Qatar.

Mutton

“The export potential of mutton remains unrealized due to the difficult epizootic situation, which prevented a stable increase in shipments in the period under review. Nevertheless, the prospect of rapid growth in export deliveries to Iran and other countries of the Middle East remains in this segment. This can be facilitated by the development of mutton processing projects by the largest Russian poultry meat producers. In the absence of force majeure, mutton exports by 2025 may exceed $10 million,” said Andrey Dalnov.

Halal certification

The main difficulty in mastering the world market is the diversity of requirements from importing countries. There are no single halal standards and a single certification center, which leads to the need to go through the certification process multiple times when delivering to different markets. This also creates a number of inconveniences when applying appropriate labeling to the packaging of branded products.

“Russia's success can bring a country brand that is attractive to Muslim countries. Islam is one of the main official religions in Russia, and Muslim traditions historically have a profound influence on the formation of Russian culture and self-identity,” Andrey Dalnov said.

JSC "Rosselkhozbank" is the basis of the national credit and financial system for servicing the agro-industrial complex of Russia. The bank was established in 2000 and today is a key lender to the country's agro-industrial complex, one of the largest and most stable banks in the country in terms of assets and capital, and also one of the leaders in the reliability rating of the largest Russian banks.