Russian government launches new programs for agricultural machinery, veterinary pharmaceuticals

MOSCOW. March 31 (Interfax) - The Russian government is launching new programs for developing agricultural machinery and producing veterinary pharmaceuticals.

"The government has prepared amendments to the Federal Scientific and Technical Program for Agricultural Development. It will be expanded in two key areas. First, creating modern machinery and equipment for the agricultural sector to reduce import dependence and improve product quality," Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said during a meeting with deputy prime ministers on Monday.

The second amendment focuses on increasing production of veterinary medicines.

Total funding for the agricultural machinery and equipment sector will reach approximately 15.8 billion rubles, including over 2.7 billion rubles in attracted investments, the government press service said.

By 2030, the program expects to develop at least 27 new types of agricultural equipment, including modern tractors, self-propelled harvesters for grains, potatoes, sugar beet and other crops, orchard and vineyard maintenance machinery, advanced sprayers, fertilizer spreaders, seeders, milking systems and egg sorting machines.

The second subprogram, Development of Veterinary Pharmaceutical Production Technologies, aims to achieve 70% domestic supply of veterinary drugs for livestock by 2030, with 61% domestic vaccine supply. Government funding will exceed 4.4 billion rubles, supplemented by over 12 billion rubles from extra-budgetary sources.

Improvements to the federal program began in 2023, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev said. The changes have made it possible to attract around 6 billion rubles in private investment and raise production efficiency and seed self-sufficiency to 67.6% by 2024. "For comparison, we were at approximately 60% in 2022," he said.

The new areas that will appear in the program are significant, Patrushev said. "Developing our own domestic machinery and equipment will further reduce dependence on foreign suppliers, with 13 billion rubles allocated through the program period," he said. In particular, the focus is on equipment for sugar beet, potato and fruit harvesting, among other things, he said. "The demand here is indeed very high," he said.

Regarding veterinary pharmaceuticals, a dependence on imports remains despite intensive sector growth in recent years, Patrushev said. "We fully cover vaccines for critical diseases, but foreign products still occupy about one third of the market."

Collaboration with major scientific institutions, including the Federal Center for Animal Health, will support these efforts. "The program allocates around 4.5 billion rubles through 2030, with an additional 12 billion rubles expected from private investment," he said.

Initial results for both subprograms are anticipated by 2027, he said.