World meat industry news

In January-November 2023, Russia exported almost $1 billion worth of agricultural products to India, which is 1.5 times more than in the same period last year, according to a review by the Agroexport federal center under the Ministry of Agriculture. Over the past year, supplies there increased 2.4 times and amounted to $768 million. In physical terms, over 11 months, more than 1.1 million tons of food were sent to India, which is 2.5 times more than in January-November 2022.

The main export product is sunflower oil: 852 thousand tons (2.5 times more) worth $793 million were shipped. Russia has become the largest supplier of these products to India. At the beginning of December, 181 thousand tons of soybean oil were also exported there, which is 2.7 times more than last year, by $164 million (an increase of 1.7 times). Lentil supplies resumed in October 2022 after a two-year break. Over the 11 months of 2023, more than 41 thousand tons of lentils worth $33 million were exported.

In addition, during this period, Russia supplied India with 27 thousand tons of coriander seeds (9% less) worth $15 million (-35%). “Despite the decline, India remains the largest buyer of coriander from Russia this year,” says Agroexport. At the beginning of December, India ranked eighth among the largest consumers of Russian food products, and at the end of 2022 it was in 11th place. According to the review, the realization of Russia's export potential on the Indian market in the medium term depends on the development of infrastructure.

Increasing transport and logistics capabilities, including within the framework of the International North-South Corridor (ITC), will help reduce costs, Agroexport analysts believe. “To reduce transport costs, it is also important that Indian supplies to Russia increase. Now the business circles of the two countries are actively establishing new ties and rebuilding supply chains, notes Lydia Kulik, head of India research at the Skolkovo Institute for Research on Emerging Markets, whose words are quoted in the review. “At the same time, transport corridors are developing, which gives reason to expect an expansion of the range of bilateral trade, including in the field of agricultural products.”

The elimination of customs barriers will play an important role in the development of trade, Agroexport believes. Currently, an increase in supplies is hampered by customs duties, as well as many additional customs payments. Director of the Agro-Industrial Complex Department of the Eurasian Economic Commission Armen Harutyunyan generally sees prospects for increasing supplies to India of such goods for which the country has a significant import need. This is especially true for lentils, soybeans, soybean and sunflower oils, as well as their cakes, and various animal feeds. “For some of these goods, India currently has a fairly high level of tariff protection, which prevents active exports from the EAEU. But I am confident that these and other issues will be widely discussed as part of the work to conclude a free trade agreement between the EAEU and India,” Agroexport quotes him as saying.

At the beginning of December, the head of the Agroexport center, Dmitry Krasnov, said that this year, shipments of agricultural products to foreign markets will amount to $45 billion - this is the target that was set in 2019, when the federal project “Export of Agro-Industrial Products” began its work. According to Deputy Minister of Agriculture Sergei Levin, over the five years of project implementation, supplies to foreign markets have almost doubled. Thus, shipments of grains increased by 80%, fat and oil products - almost three times, fish and seafood - by a third, food and processing industry products - by 1.5 times, meat products - almost 4.5 times. This year, exports of agricultural products also show strong growth, the deputy minister noted. In 2022, Russia ranked 17th in the world ranking of exporters of agricultural products with an indicator of $41.6 billion (2.1% share).