Russian govt endorses strategy for development of organic goods production through 2030

MOSCOW. July 17 (Interfax) - The Russian government has endorsed a strategy for developing production of organic goods through 2030.

According to the decree published on the cabinet website, the Agriculture Ministry has been instructed to submit an action plan for the implementation of the strategy within 6 months.

The strategy is aimed at advanced development of production and consumption of organic goods, balanced development of their domestic market and exports, introduction and use of advanced scientific and technical developments in the field of organic agriculture and incentivizing entrepreneurship in the field of organic production, the document said.

"In Russia today organic food and agricultural feedstock are produced in 47 regions. Producers supply the market with grains, flour, baby food, canned food and juices, meat and milk, nuts and berries, fruits and vegetables, fodder, as well as a number of other goods. Their production is growing consistently by an average of 8-10% annually. But so far the share of domestic organic products in the domestic market is less than half of total volume," the government said.

According to the document, the volume of final production of organics by 2030 should grow to 114.5 billion rubles (9.1 billion rubles in 2021). It is envisaged that annual production growth will amount to 20.7%, while in 2021 the figure was 13.3%.

It is forecast that the volume of consumption of organic goods in Russia in 2030 will reach 149.8 billion rubles compared with 24.4 billion rubles in 2021, while exports increase to 27.8 billion rubles compared with 3.7 billion rubles, respectively. It is also envisaged that the share of imports in the total volume of the Russian market of organic products will decrease from 63% in 2021 to 24% by 2030.

The target areas for organic exports are China, the Persian Gulf states, Southeast Asia and neighboring countries.

The volume of investments required to ensure the projected growth rate of the industry will increase from 1.6 billion rubles in 2022 to 11.3 billion rubles in 2030 (the total for 2022-2030 - 59 billion rubles), the document said.

The strategy recalls that the law "On Organic Products" entered into force on January 1, 2020. As of Q1 2023, 16 certification bodies accredited by The Federal Accreditation Service were operating in Russia. In addition, Russian producers in 2021 were certified by 15 foreign certification organizations according to foreign organic standards.