Give me grain: the harvest in Russia in 2025 will exceed last year's
The harvest figures in Russia will exceed last year's result, the Ministry of Agriculture reported, summing up the preliminary results of the harvesting campaign. Thus, potato (+16%), wheat (+14%), rye (+24%), barley (+21%) and other crops are being dismantled after processing 88% of the area. The ministry also predicts the harvest of 135 million tons of grain, including about 90 million tons of wheat. High-tech technologies have helped farmers improve their efficiency, the ministry said. The manufacturers themselves confirm this assessment, while noting that they will not be able to make a profit, since the purchase prices of their products are very low.
High technology has helped
The preliminary results of the harvesting campaign in Russia, despite the unfavorable weather conditions in the southern regions of the country, allow us to count on a decent harvest by the end of the year, the Ministry of Agriculture told Izvestia.
— 88% of the area of grain and leguminous crops have already been harvested. At the same time, the harvest rate is higher than last year's. As of October 3, grain and leguminous crops were threshed from an area of 40 million hectares, 126.9 million tons of grain were harvested (117.1 million tons in 2024) with a yield of 31.7 c/ha (27.8 c/ha in 2024), the ministry's press service reported.
In particular, more than 460 thousand tons of buckwheat, almost 1.1 million tons of rye, 340 thousand tons of rice, and about 22.7 million tons of sugar beet were harvested.
The ministry is also waiting for the fulfillment of the forecast for the volume of grain harvesting, which was given by the department following the results of the sowing campaign.
— At the moment, we maintain the forecast at 135 million tons of grain, including about 90 million tons of wheat. This will be enough to meet the country's domestic needs and preserve its export potential," the ministry said.
The harvest of oilseeds is expected to reach 31.5 million tons, sugar beet — 48.1 million tons, potatoes – 7.6 million tons, vegetables – 7.6 million tons. The harvest of fruits and berries may amount to 2.1 million tons, including 1.9 million tons of apples.
— This year, many crops are showing an increase in yields. In particular, lentils (+55%), peas (+37%), chickpeas (+27%), rye (+24%), barley (+21%), soybeans (+21%), wheat (+14%), rapeseed (+8.1%), corn grain (+7%), buckwheat (+9%), sugar beet (+4%), potatoes (+16%), — specified in the Ministry of Agriculture.
Harvesting of other crops is also in the active phase. According to the Ministry, about 3.5 million tons of outdoor vegetables have already been harvested. This is 9% more than on the same date last year.
"The use of high—tech intensive technologies for cultivating crops this year under relatively favorable weather conditions in certain territories has allowed to increase yields, optimize the structure of acreage, as well as increase the efficiency of using material and technical resources and, accordingly, increase the gross yield on major crops," the ministry explained the reasons for the increase in yields to Izvestia.
The State Duma Committee on Agrarian Issues confirmed information about the growth and pace of harvesting to Izvestia. At the same time, they pointed out the problems of farmers, which have not yet been solved.
— Despite the vagaries of the weather in the Rostov region, Krasnodar Territory, Crimea and other regions, we managed to get a decent harvest of legumes this year. We expect it to be at the level of 140 million tons. There will also be a good harvest of potatoes, vegetables and other crops," Vladimir Kashin, head of the State Duma Committee on Agrarian Issues, explained to Izvestia.
Despite the economic difficulties, farmers work in these conditions with dignity. However, Kashin filled in about last year's situation with a sharp rise in prices in Russia for potatoes, and earlier for eggs.
— Today, the purchase price from potato growers is a maximum of 15 rubles per 1 kg. If retail chains made, as they say, a margin of 10-15%, then what price should a vegetable have? But we don't see it on the shelves, it's 2-3.5 times more expensive there. The networks take all this extra charge for themselves, but potato production remains unprofitable," the deputy explained.
The same situation applies to grain prices, which have remained virtually unchanged since 2015. Prices for combines have increased 2.2 times during this time, fertilizers have tripled, and grain prices were 9 rubles per 1 kg, and now they are starting from 12 rubles, the parliamentarian added.
Why is the harvest good, but there is no profit
Representatives of the agricultural business themselves assess the situation in different ways.
— We agree with the Ministry of Agriculture's potato yield estimates. At the same time, they are quite cautious. If the initial harvest forecast for this year was 7.3 million tons, then it increased to 7.6 million tons. The ministry is guided by Rosstat, which will publish the preliminary harvest results sometime in late January. According to our estimates, the harvest will rise closer to 8 million tons, that is, it will be very good. And we predict the same thing for the entire borscht set," said Alexey Krasilnikov, Executive Director of the Potato and Vegetable Market Participants Union (Potato Union).
The high yield is confirmed by the low purchase price of vegetables from producers. It can contribute to the optimism of agricultural regulatory authorities, but farmers themselves are not happy, the expert added.
— Today, this price is lower than the cost of growing potatoes, and some governors recognize this. Moreover, support for the agricultural sector is declining again, although it was not very high before," said Alexey Krasilnikov.
These assessments are shared by the People's Farmer Association.
— The harvest is decent, however, not in all regions, in some there are problems with harvesting it. But in general, it is good for consumers, there will be no shortage of anything, but if we talk about producers, there are nuances," Babken Ispiryan, deputy chairman of the council of the People's Farmer Association, told Izvestia.
Today, purchase prices for agricultural products are very low, and basic goods for production — machinery, fuel, fertilizers, and pesticides — have doubled in price, he noted.
— That is, if we had harvested such a crop five years ago, we could have safely updated our equipment and invested in development. But at the moment it is an unacceptable luxury," explained the representative of the agricultural business.
The harvest will be much higher than last year, and will probably be among the top five for the Russian agro-industrial complex, although the weather did not contribute to this, and all the reasons why there is a lag in harvesting are related to it, the former Deputy Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, Doctor of Economics, told Izvestia. Sciences Leonid Kholod. He drew attention to the fact that the situation with prices for the grown will not depend on the volume of harvesting. For example, the problem with potatoes is that they cannot get from farmers to retail chains, which have their own requirements for vegetables, including calibration.
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