Russia's Agriculture Ministry expects the implementation of investment projects in cattle farming to increase domestic grain consumption by over 1.5 million tonnes in 2010.

 

However, meeting the demand of cattle farming requires changing the structure of cropland so that an increased share of land is used to produce high-energy and high-protein crops such as corn, rapeseed, and soy, Agriculture Minister Yelena Skrynnik said. This year, the planting area for these crops increased by 22%, she said.

 

Skrynnik highlighted three tasks for the grain production sector: to increase grain output, domestic consumption, and exports.

 

Russia is the fourth largest grain exporter after the US, the EU, and Canada, she said. "Grain has become a strategic export product, and its exports are estimated at US$4 billion," Skrynnik said. Russia's grain exports almost doubled over the last five years to 23 million tonnes.

 

National Grain Producer Union president Pavel Skurikhin said that if Russian grain producers increased exports to 50 million tonnes they could increase annual grain export revenue to US$8–9 billion from US$3.6 billion in 2009.

 

Russian grain producers are expected to increase grain output to 140 million–150 million tonnes over the next seven–eight years, Skurikhin said.

 

Last year, when 15 regions were hit by droughts, Russia's gross grain output amounted to 97 million tonnes, which is higher than the average output over the past nine years, Skrynnik said.