Agroeco Group plans to increase pork exports to $60 mln in 2025
ST. PETERSBURG/MOSCOW. June 26 (Interfax) - Agroeco Group, one of Russia's largest pork producers, plans to increase its pork exports to $60 million this year, up from $55 million last year.
"We started exporting in 2022. Initially, shipments amounted to $5 million; in 2023, they grew to $27 million, and in 2024 they reached $55 million - almost doubling. This year, we expect to approach $60 million," Vladimir Maslov, the chairman of the group's board of directors, told Interfax in an interview on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF 2025).
The company has already exported $30 million worth of products in the first six months of the year, he said.
"Initially, our export geography was limited to nearby countries - Belarus, Georgia, Armenia. But now it's expanding rapidly. Over the past year, we've entered the markets of Serbia, India and some African countries. And just a month ago, we received official approval to export to Vietnam. The first shipment has already been dispatched," he said.
Regarding plans to supply products to China, Maslov said that the company has already passed the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance's (Rosselkhoznadzor) internal certification and is now awaiting the submission of documents to Chinese regulators and their decision.
"It's worth noting that Asian markets are attractive because their consumption is oriented toward offal. These are products that are cheap in our market but fetch good prices there. This allows us to generate additional revenue. But besides offal, we naturally plan to supply larger vacuum-packed cuts as well," he said.
Exports are crucial for the industry, Maslov said. "The domestic pork market is nearing saturation, and prices are rising slowly - slower than production costs. As a result, margins are shrinking in the domestic market. Exports help maintain profitability because margins are higher there. At the current ruble exchange rate, this is more challenging, but we will continue moving in this direction," he said.
According to the National Union of Hog Breeders' 2024 ranking, the company ranks sixth among Russian pork producers with a market share of around 6%. It operates 49 pig farms, a breeding and genetics center, four feed mills and a crop farming cluster. In recent years, the group has also expanded into dairy production and deepened its processing capabilities.
