Imports threaten Russian meat sector

RUSSIA - As the Russian government looks to decrease the country’s reliance on meat imports, research group Market Advice talks about the development of the domestic meat sector.

Cynics say that there is no chance that Russian meat production will become competitive enough to provide an adequate level of support to agribusiness. They point out that this sector buys more and more meat from other countries focused on meat exports.

Yet, other analysts say that a quota-driven Russian meat market is becoming ever more attractive to investors, even though the sector is still dependent on imports.

Now, Market Advice shares its opinions on the Russian meat sector.

According to the statistics department, domestic meat production increased from 1.7m tonnes to 1.8m tonnes between 2003 and 2004, and manufacture of meat semis also increased from 600,000 tonnes to 716,000 tonnes.

Total manufacture of meat products rose by 248, 000 tonnes. Meat consumption has also risen, largely due to a rise in disposable incomes in Russia. In 2000, Russians ate around 40kg of meat per person, and now they eat about 50-55kg.

The government wants average meat consumption to reach 70kg per person and is actively promoting domestic producers to help achieve this.

Source: http://www.cee-foodindustry.com