Russia boosted exports of agricultural products 16% in Jan-May - deputy PM

ST. PETERSBURG. June 16 (Interfax) - Russia boosted exports of agricultural products 16% in January-May of this year, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Viktoria Abramchenko said at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

"In five months of this year, we boosted exports of agricultural products 16%. For example, we exported 19% more to South Korea in five months, 33% more to Belarus," Abramchenko said.

Exports to India increased 3.6-fold, Abramchenko said. "Russia feeds not only itself, but other countries, as well," Abramchenko said, noting that the planet's population will grow to 10 billion by 2050, according to experts. "That means that countries that are food donors, like Russia, should understand that going forward they'll have to feed a larger number of people on the planet," she said.

More than 500 business meetings were held in the first five months of the year to expand the geography of exports, Abramchenko said. "We're going to boost exports of our food, and we'll continue these contacts. We're going to solve logistics problems, problems with mutual settlements," she said.