Russian Food Embargo

The results of the Russian food embargo are quite controversial. Despite the fact that manufacturers have been able to make up for the lack of imported food products, the quality of our agro-industrial complex products still steps forward to foreign counterparts that are banned. The embargo was extended several times and at the moment it expires in December 2020.

Impact of the embargo

Before the embargo, products worth 43 billion dollars were imported, but now the number is about 30. Moreover, the state began to invest twice as much in agriculture. Investments are paying off this year, as borders were closed also to goods. The system of long-term and cheap government loans helps transform and modernize Russian villages. It is where a quarter of the population of Russia still lives and works. New plants and production facilities with new technologies appear, such as a dairy plant in Kaluga.

Lifting the embargo

The lifting of the food embargo, like its introduction, will definitely shake up Russian producers again. Considering the situation on the example of dairy products, it can be noted that at present world prices for raw milk are quite low, and European producers will be able to supply dairy products to Russia at prices comparable to Russian ones. It has to be mentioned that now there are fewer truly competitive Russian products, the quality of food has dropped significantly, while its cost has increased. The declining purchasing power must also be taken into consideration.

However, it is too early to talk about the possibility of extending the embargo. Ahead is the ambitious task of increasing the export of Russian food products, and it is rather difficult to develop the active export of food products simultaneously with the ban on food imports.