The Plenary Session of the XXXII Congress of AKKOR was held in Moscow
In 2020, the share of farmers in gross agricultural production increased from 13.7% to 14.3%, and the production index exceeded 103.8% - this is the highest growth rate in agriculture.
This was stated by the First Deputy Minister of Agriculture Dzhambulat Khatuov during the first day of the XXXII Congress of the Association of Peasant Farms and Agricultural Cooperatives of Russia (AKKOR). The event was attended by heads of farms and heads of cooperative associations from 70 regions of the country, as well as the leaders of the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food of Tatarstan Rishat Khabipov and others.
The main topic of the meeting was the development of the farming movement, agricultural cooperation, as well as issues of state support. Today small business occupies one of the key positions in the field of crop production. In particular, farmers ensured the production of a third of the total grain volume - 39.4 million tons, which is 11.2% more than in 2019. The horticulture industry is also developing dynamically - the share of peasant farms in the total volume of commercial production has increased from 10% to 23% over the past 5 years. Last year, the gross harvest of fruits and berries in the organized sector amounted to 1.22 million tons (+ 3.4%).
In addition, it was small enterprises that ensured the growth of livestock and, in general, positive dynamics in Russian livestock breeding in the last year. Over the past five years on peasant farms, the increase in livestock and poultry production (for slaughter) was 25%, milk - 38%, eggs - 45%.
Deputy Minister Yelena Fastova stressed that the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia pays special attention to the development of small agribusiness in the country. The share of farms at the expense of federal funds in the adopted support measures reaches 31.4%. In 2021, 19 billion rubles are provided for these purposes. 13.9 billion rubles provided within the “compensating” and “stimulating” subsidies.
Concessional loans remain one of the most effective and demanded support measures among farmers. In 2020, the amount of investment loans issued to small businesses made up 39.65 billion rubles, which is 55% more than a year earlier. Also, last year there was an increase in short-term lending - 58.03 billion rubles (+ 7%). The department will continue improving the availability of state support, increase funding and improve the delivery of funds to farmers.
Also during the event, the participants discussed the provision of farmers with fertilizers and agricultural machinery, regional aspects of the distribution of state support and interaction with retail chains, the development of rural areas and other topical issues. The Ministry will take into account all the proposals made by the farmers at the congress in its future work.