Walterp
Member
- Location
- Pembrokeshire
US and EU sanctions on Russia (after re-claiming the Crimea) have been a major success - for Russia. Impelled to protect and develop Russian agriculture, government support and protectionist measures has goosed output by 30% in 2014/2016.
Russia developed an import-substitution programme: cheap loans, tax incentives, and grants for agricultural equipment.
In 2016, Russia was the world's largest exporter of grain.
For farmers, it's the last new frontier. Russians, understandably, don't aspire to be peasants even after perestroika reforms. Huge farming outfits (average size c. 15,000 acres) remain, but their livestock enterprises collapsed - cutting demand for grain and slashing the area planted - in an interesting example of what can happen, when the State withdraws its underwriting of agriculture.
'Dog-and-stick' everywhere, with no fertiliser, few inputs, no new machinery and no capital investment, but on a magnificent scale - Russia has 300 million acres of arable land. It is the world’s third-largest area behind only India and the US.
Now Mr Putin seeks not only to make Russia self-sufficient by 2020 (pre-sanctions, it imported over 40% of its food) but also, in an interesting slant on the direction of travel of US production practices, suggests Russia can become the world’s largest supplier of “healthy, ecologically clean, high-quality food”.
It appears to be working. I wonder if he'll make it?
Russia developed an import-substitution programme: cheap loans, tax incentives, and grants for agricultural equipment.
In 2016, Russia was the world's largest exporter of grain.
For farmers, it's the last new frontier. Russians, understandably, don't aspire to be peasants even after perestroika reforms. Huge farming outfits (average size c. 15,000 acres) remain, but their livestock enterprises collapsed - cutting demand for grain and slashing the area planted - in an interesting example of what can happen, when the State withdraws its underwriting of agriculture.
'Dog-and-stick' everywhere, with no fertiliser, few inputs, no new machinery and no capital investment, but on a magnificent scale - Russia has 300 million acres of arable land. It is the world’s third-largest area behind only India and the US.
Now Mr Putin seeks not only to make Russia self-sufficient by 2020 (pre-sanctions, it imported over 40% of its food) but also, in an interesting slant on the direction of travel of US production practices, suggests Russia can become the world’s largest supplier of “healthy, ecologically clean, high-quality food”.
It appears to be working. I wonder if he'll make it?