Putin hinted that farmers should not wait for a delay from mobilization

The president remains unhappy with the grain deal

Russian farmers, apparently, will not be granted a respite from the mobilization, which they asked for in connection with the harvesting and sowing campaign. At a meeting on the situation in the agro-industrial complex, Vladimir Putin demanded that the governors provide support to the families of agricultural workers drafted into the army. “I ask you to pay special attention to this issue,” he stressed. The heads of the regions assured the head of state that there were no problems with seasonal field work: the country’s food security would be ensured in full.

In early August, the head of the Ministry of Agriculture, Dmitry Patrushev, said that the 2022 harvest was in jeopardy: the planned volumes might not be achieved due to the late start of harvesting due to the cold spring and heavy rains, as well as due to problems with the supply of components for foreign equipment . But those fears appear to have turned out to be a false alarm. At a meeting with the president, it turned out that instead of the forecasted 130 million tons of grain, farmers will harvest 150 million tons, of which 100 million tons of wheat instead of the expected 87. “This will be a record value in the entire history of Russia,” Vladimir Putin proudly emphasized.

According to Mr. Patrushev’s updated information, records should also be expected for other types of agricultural products: for example, the soybean harvest will amount to 5.4 million tons, and fruits and berries – 1.5 million tons. However, the harvesting process is still far from complete: the same soybean is currently harvested only 16% of the plan, sugar beet – 28%, sunflower – 15%, potatoes – 50%. In parallel with the harvest season, winter crops are being sown in a number of regions, and here, as the minister said, due to “rather severe weather conditions”, there is “some lag behind the pace of last year”: by the end of September, only 47% of the fields were sown.

Earlier it became known that Russian agrarians turned to the government with a request to grant them a respite from mobilization at least until the end of seasonal agricultural work. Now some workers are being taken straight from the field, a move that industry officials say is jeopardizing not only the current harvest, but prospects for future harvests as well. However, the Ministry of Agriculture, apparently, does not observe such problems. “Seasonal field work is proceeding normally,” Patrushev told Putin.

The governors who spoke at the meeting did not have any complaints or remarks in connection with the partial mobilization either. Russian agrarians, they assured, are fully provided with everything necessary and are ready to carry out the task. “There is no doubt that the field work will proceed without disruption,” said the head of the Krasnodar Territory, Vladimir Kondratiev. The only problem of the agro-industrial complex is a strong (up to 70–90% in some positions) dependence on imported seeds. Therefore, in the event that foreign suppliers leave the market, the governors propose to transfer their assets to the Ministry of Agriculture without fail. “Because without “parent” companies it will be very difficult for us to maintain the sowing potential of our fields,” explained the head of the Stavropol Territory, Vladimir Vladimirov.

Vladimir Putin drew attention to what the speakers were silent about: the harvest is a record one, but the supply of Russian grain to the world market is still difficult. (Export this year is at its lowest level since 2017. – “MK”). This situation threatens to turn into a global food crisis. “And the responsibility for it, of course, lies entirely with the so-called collective West. This is completely unrelated to Russia’s special military operation in Donbass,” the president stressed. The richest countries in the world, according to the GDP, are pursuing a “predatory” policy: they are engaged in emission, and the printed money is spent on buying food. As a result, its value in the world market increased by 40% compared to 2020. At the same time, Putin acknowledged that after the spring peaks, prices are declining and have already returned to the level of the beginning of the year. Apparently, the Ukrainian food that got on the market played a role in this. However, the president remains unhappy with the way the deal is being carried out: last week, 46 ships with grain left Ukraine, according to him, but 14 of them went to Turkey, and 25 went to various EU ports. “Are they the poorest countries, or what? The situation is not changing here. A complete swindle, and nothing more, ”VVP insists.

Russia, Putin believes, must prepare for the impending global crisis and fully ensure its food security. Farmers have the opportunity to not only feed the country to the full, but also increase its export potential. Although the focus of society, according to VVP, is now the SVO and the referendums taking place in the Donbass, no one has repealed the fundamental law “bread is the head of everything”. “And maybe, in such conditions as now, this law is one of the most important,” Putin summed up.

Published in the newspaper “Moskovsky Komsomolets” No. 28878 dated September 28, 2022

Newspaper headline:
Record harvest not allowed on the market