Volga Federal District Farmers' Readiness for Spring Sowing Discussed in Kazan
Today, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Tatarstan held a meeting on the preparation and implementation of spring sowing in the constituent entities of the Volga Federal District. The meeting was chaired by Deputy Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Federation Andrey Razin. At the event, attended by heads of agricultural management bodies and relevant services, farmers' readiness for the spring sowing campaign and the achievement of planned targets were discussed.
Last year, the grain harvest in the Volga Federal District amounted to 33.8 million tons, with record volumes of oilseeds and sugar beets harvested. This year, the total sowing area is planned to increase to 24 million hectares. An increase in the area planted with forage crops, soybeans, spring wheat, and buckwheat is expected. Winter grain crops occupy 4.3 million hectares, 96.4% of which are in good condition. The sowing campaign has already begun in nine regions of the district.
During the meeting, participants discussed the availability of basic material and technical resources for farmers. The fertilizer purchase plan has been 101% fulfilled, and seed preparation is on par with last year's levels. The district's farmers have 111,400 tractors, 60,300 seeders, and 46,900 cultivators.
To ensure efficient fieldwork, grain producers have been allocated over 2 billion rubles from the federal budget, and 507.7 million rubles have been allocated for the development of vegetable and potato farming.
Furthermore, the meeting addressed issues of preserving and improving soil fertility, as well as the development of agricultural land.
Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Tatarstan and Minister of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Tatarstan Marat Zyabbarov reported on the readiness for spring fieldwork in Tatarstan and noted that last year's gross crop production growth in the Republic of Tatarstan exceeded 15%. This growth was primarily due to oilseeds, with 1.0 million tons of oilseeds harvested. The gross grain harvest amounted to 4.625 million tons, with a yield of 35.9 centners per hectare.
According to the minister, 485,000 hectares of winter crops have been sown for the current harvest. Their growth has begun everywhere. On-site monitoring by the Rosselkhoztsentr branch showed that 98% of the surveyed areas are in good or satisfactory condition. Overall, the sowing season began with sufficient moisture reserves.
The area under cultivation for this year's harvest will amount to
2,657,000 hectares, the same as last year. Grain crops account for
1,249,000 hectares, oilseeds for 619,000 hectares, sugar beets for 53,000 hectares, and potatoes and vegetables in agricultural and peasant farms account for 7,000 hectares.
"The current sowing campaign will involve 11,000 tractors, 2,500 trucks, 880 seeding units, 4,600 seeders, and 5,300 tillage units," the minister reported.
Work to upgrade the machinery and tractor fleet continues. Since the beginning of this year, farms have purchased 698 units of equipment, including 93 tractors, 25 grain harvesters, 9 forage harvesters, and 571 units of other agricultural machinery, worth 2.7 billion rubles. This includes 223 units of equipment purchased through Rosagroleasing, worth 1.8 billion rubles.
Concluding the meeting, Andrei Razin instructed the heads of the Volga Federal District's agricultural sector governing bodies to ensure the implementation of the agreed-upon and approved structure of crop areas, plans for the purchase of mineral fertilizers, the acquisition of agricultural machinery, and the sowing of domestically bred seeds. The deputy minister also emphasized the importance of timely delivery of support funds to recipients.