Russia has enough buckwheat, sugar stocks for everyone - deputy PM

MOSCOW. March 21 (Interfax) - Russian Deputy Prime Minister Viktoria Abramchenko has called on Russians not to give in to panic and not to buy sugar and buckwheat in large volumes, as there are sufficient stocks of these products in the country for everyone.

There are also no prerequisites for shortages of other products.

"Just as in 2020, I want to reassure our citizens: we are completely self-sufficient in both sugar and buckwheat. There is no need to give in to panic and buy up these products. There's enough for everyone," Abramchenko said at a meeting that Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin held with deputy prime ministers on Monday.

Panic buying will only destabilize the distribution network, Abramchenko said. "I stress that there are sufficient sugar and buckwheat stocks in the country to satisfy domestic demand," she said.

A decision was made this year to increase the cultivation of buckwheat and sugar beets, Abramchenko said. "We plan to sow 1.032 million hectares of buckwheat, which is 50,000 hectares more than last year. And sugar beets will be sown over 1.07 million hectares, 66,000 hectares more than last year. This means that the new harvest will ensure the presence of sugar and buckwheat on store shelves, and Russian confectioners and bakers will receive the necessary volumes of sugar," she said.

The Russian agro-industrial complex is fully providing the country with main food products, Abramchenko said. "No prerequisites for a deficit of food products are being observed under sanctions pressure. We are continuing to expand import shipments from friendly countries, in addition, in order to saturate the market and increase the range available," Abramchenko said, noting that the Russian Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance (Rosselkhoznadzor) has given permission for imports of products from more than 140 enterprises in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Turkey, India, China, and other countries, in particular, imports of fruits and vegetables, dairy and meat products, feed and feed additives, and pedigree material.