Harvest without profit: Ural farmers risk losing money for the new season The fields went under water according to the regional Ministry of Agriculture, bad weather destroyed crops in 23 thousand dunams, including grains, fodder crops and vegetables. The potato harvest may be lower by 60 thousand tons than last year, vegetables in open ground - by 5 thousand tons. The final damage to farmers will be calculated by December.
In some farms the losses are significantly higher than the average. Chairman of the Trud agricultural production company Alexey Kalujin reported a drop in rape yields by 20% and wheat by 30%. In the Zaria cooperative, the wheat harvest dropped from 32 cents per acre last year to less than 15. The authorities expect to replace the missing amount of vegetables with supplies from nearby areas. This helps supply stores, but does not reimburse local producers for the costs of lost crops. Milk lost its way out Dairy farmers face another problem. In the spring, a pasteurosis quarantine was introduced in six municipalities in the Sverdlovsk region. Restrictions on the export of products and feeds disrupted established relationships with customers. According to the director general of Talitsky Dairy, Yuri Okunev, farms produce about 2.1 thousand tons of milk per day, while local factories are able to process about 1.5 thousand tons. The processors received additional volumes, but lowered the purchase prices. The chairman of the regional union of farmers Andrey Anikaev said that for small producers the price dropped to 30 rubles per liter. Thus, veterinary restrictions increased farmers' dependence on domestic demand. For the regional team, the question is not only about lifting the blockade, but also about restoring sales channels: lost customers do not necessarily return immediately. Selling below costs grain farmers also lose money on the remaining crop. According to Laner, wheat is sold at 8-10 rubles per kg, at a cost of 13.6 rubles.