Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
It leaves a one-million-tonne deficit compared to annual domestic demand.
Russia is facing another potential food crisis as domestic potato production drops sharply.
According to The Moscow Times, official forecasts show this year’s harvest falling from 8.5 million tonnes down to 7.5 million tonnes.
That drop leaves a deficit of up to one million tonnes compared to annual national demand.
While crop yields per hectare continue to decline, commercial planting areas have shrunk to 277,800 hectares – an eighteen-year low.
Store shelves are already reflecting the gap. Retail potato prices jumped 35 percent year over year to 59.1 rubles per kilogram by late August, while wholesale prices recorded a matching 33 percent increase.
Alongside cabbage, potatoes are the most popular vegetable in Russia and are often called the “second bread,” as they form the backbone of daily meals, soups, and side dishes.
Spikes across the aisle
The price hikes extend far beyond potatoes. Other essential ingredients in the traditional borscht recipe are also climbing rapidly above the official inflation rate of six percent.
Cabbage prices jumped 35.2 percent compared to last year. Onions rose 27.2 percent, beets increased 20.4 percent, and carrots went up 17.7 percent.
Supply chains usually wait until February to import foreign crops as domestic reserves run dry.
This year, analysts predict buyers will have to start ordering from foreign suppliers like China and Mongolia a full month earlier to keep markets stocked.
Mounting farm expenses
Agricultural experts point directly to widespread cost pressures for the sudden spike.
Expenses are soaring across the board. Farmers are paying much higher prices for everyday necessities like fuel, lubricants, seeds, fertilizers, and modern storage facilities.
Transport costs have climbed sharply for long-distance deliveries from southern farming hubs to major cities.
Fuel prices alone jumped more than 20 percent since January, driving up shipping expenses and causing first-quarter farm profits to tumble by 22.5 percent as losses mounted, sending Russia’s farming sector into an eight-year low, United24 Media reported in June.
