The Ministry of Agriculture expects moderate dynamics of food prices within the limits of general inflation

The Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation expects moderate price dynamics of the main categories of food in 2021, it will remain within the limits of general inflation. This is stated in the message of the ministry.

"The Ministry of Agriculture of RUSSIA expects moderate price dynamics for the main categories of food in 2021, which will remain within the limits of general inflation. The systemic measures taken by the Russian government to regulate the price situation in the food market are comprehensive and have already reduced price volatility for a number of basic food products" , - noted in the message.

According to the ministry, thanks to the tariff EXPORT quota, the price of class III wheat has fallen since the beginning of the year by 4.7% - to 13.7 rubles. per kg, IV class - by 4.2%, up to 12.9 rubles. per kg, rye - by 4.6%, up to 9.8 rubles. per kg. To maintain the profitability of processing, FLOUR mills are provided with subsidies for the purchase of food wheat, and bakeries - for the sale of bread and bakery products. The implementation of these measures made it possible to reduce the cost of flour by 3.7% since the beginning of the year and maintain the price level for bread.

In addition, the decline in grain prices in the coming month should affect the cost of feed, which will help maintain stable prices for MEAT and dairy products, according to the Ministry of Agriculture. At the same time, they noted that the annual trend in the dairy group is comparable to the level of inflation, and over the past month, the cost of cheese, butter, and pasteurized MILK has shown near-zero dynamics. "Reducing the cost of feed is a favorable factor, including for poultry producers - meat and eggs," the ministry stressed.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, selling prices for chicken meat have already begun to decline, and this trend will be maintained thanks to new mechanisms to support the industry. In particular, the maximum size of a preferential short-term loan provided to one borrower for poultry enterprises has been increased from 1 to 1.5 billion rubles, and it has also become possible to prolong preferential investment loans for up to 12 years to enterprises affected by highly pathogenic avian influenza. To ensure the fodder base, preferential short-term loans have been introduced to livestock breeders for the purchase of grain, meal, cake and amino acids.

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In addition, as noted in the ministry, selling prices for SUGAR (-1.2% since the beginning of the year) and refined bottled sunflower oil (+0.8% since the beginning of the year) remain at a stable level, which is due to the effect of agreements between producers and trade networks. In the long term, this will be facilitated by measures to support producers developed by the Russian Ministry of Agriculture, as well as the expansion of acreage under sugar beet and sunflower, which will increase the production of final products. "In addition, in 2021 it is planned to increase the sowing of the main cereal crops, which will provide processing enterprises with the necessary volumes of raw materials, will allow maintaining sufficient production volumes and preventing sharp fluctuations in prices for final products," the Ministry of Agriculture added.