Territory of the republic: 25 679 km2.
Population: 1 506 446 people, of which 78,98% are city residents.
Geographical position: the region is located in the center of the East European Plain. Borders: in the south and southeast - with the Lipetsk region, in the south-west - with the Oryol region, in the west and north-west - with the Kaluga region, in the north and north-east - with the Moscow region, in the east - with the Ryazan region ...
Climate: moderately continental, characterized by moderately cold winters and warm summers. Average annual temperatures range from +4 to +5 degrees. The average temperature in January is from -9 to -12 degrees, in July from +18 to +22 degrees. The duration of the period with positive temperatures is 220-225 days. Precipitation is unevenly distributed within the region. Most of them are in the northwestern regions (575 mm), the smaller - in the southeastern regions (470 mm). One third of all precipitation in the region is recorded in the summer months, mainly in July. In the frost-free period, 70% of the annual precipitation falls. By the end of winter, the thickness of the snow cover reaches 0,3-0,7 m, the soils freeze to a depth of 0,6-0,9 m.
Relief: flat and hilly. The main surface forms here are river valleys and watersheds.
Soils: soddy-podzolic in the northwest, gray forest soils in the central part, degraded and leached chernozems in the south.
Agricultural land: 1740 thousand ha or 68% of the total area of the region. Arable land occupies 1465 thousand ha (84% of farmland).
The journal "Potato System" has already talked about the development of potato growing in the Tula region, but it was back in 2009. Then we wrote about the revival of the industry in the region. Today, the Tula region is confidently among the leaders in potato production in Russia, the largest Tula farms occupy the leading lines in terms of gross harvest and productivity, and we are sure that their experience is interesting to all Russian potato growers.
Potato growing is one of the main directions of plant growing in the Tula region, its development is facilitated by transport proximity to the capital, agro-climatic and soil conditions.
Products grown on the Tula fields have always been in demand not only in Moscow, but also in other regions of the country. But perestroika times made adjustments to the plans of the Tula agricultural producers: the area was reduced from year to year, the cultivation technology was violated. As a result, the results crawled down. Among the main producers for a long time remained private farms and summer residents.
But over the past few years, the situation in the potato industry has changed dramatically. The area under potatoes increased to almost 50 thousand hectares, while the share of agricultural organizations and peasant (farmer) households increased significantly. Today, the area under potato in this category of farms has reached almost 20 thousand hectares. Moreover, more than a quarter of potato plantations are equipped with modern irrigation systems, cultivation technologies are improved, regional farms specializing in growing seed potatoes have grown stronger.
In 2015, more than a million tons of potatoes were harvested from Tula fields. Thanks to this indicator, the Tula region has strengthened in third place in the Central Federal District, while the region is in first place in terms of yield growth. The 2015 potato crop is a record in the Tula region over the past 20 years.
The largest contribution to the total crop was made by Maxim Gorky LLC (yield amounted to 423 kg / ha), Kimovskiye Prostory LLC (380 kg / ha), Manuk Avetisyan farm (350 kg / ha), Bogoroditsky Alliance LLC (295 kg / ha).
Adverse weather conditions, which often arise during the period of potato ripening, contribute to the transition of Tula potato growers to more modern plant protection technologies and the introduction of irrigation systems. Tula villagers prefer highly productive varieties and hybrids of both domestic selection and imported, for example Dutch.
Large regional potato producers have primary and deep processing facilities on their farms. This allows us to supply “second bread” to large retail chains, washed and packaged, satisfying the needs of the most demanding consumer.
Potato of Tula producers has a wide geography of sales. It is in demand in Moscow and the Moscow region, in Krasnodar and Volgograd, Saratov and Nizhny Novgorod, Tver and Bryansk, Lipetsk and Samara, Ryazan and St. Petersburg, Rostov and Perm, as well as in other regions of the country.
The largest regional producer, LLC Maxim Gorky, processes the produced potatoes into potato flakes. This product is supplied to different regions of the country, as well as to Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, as well as Poland, Chile and China.
If we talk about state support for potato growers, then they are available all the measures that are provided to other agricultural producers. Among them: unrelated support in crop production per hectare of sown area, compensation for part of the cost of purchasing elite seeds, interest on short-term and investment loans, support for agricultural insurance.
In addition, the regional government is ready to develop and introduce new practices to support initiative farms in this industry. The main thing is to have a result! And he already exists. It is not for nothing that the successes of the Tula agrarians in growing potatoes were noted by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture at the All-Russian Agronomic Meeting, held on January 27, 2016.
Maxim Gorky LLC
The farm has specialized in the production of potatoes for more than 15 years. It is part of the National Land Company.
In 2011, the company opened a potato flakes workshop. The available capacities make it possible to produce about 800 tons of cereal per month, about 7 thousand tons per year.
The farm products are supplied to Belarus, Kazakhstan, Poland, China, Israel.
Today, the main activities of Maxim Gorky LLC are:
- Potato and grain production;
- Potato washing and packaging;
- Potato processing.
The company processes about 50 thousand hectares of land (part of the area is located in the Bryansk and Kaluga regions), a significant part of the potatoes is grown using irrigation equipment. The farm has the largest complex in Russia with 130 thousand tons for storing potatoes.
PEASANT-FARMING FARM “ZHAK” (CHAPTER KFH MANUK ZHULYEVICH AVETISYAN)
The farm was established in 2004. Then 40 hectares of cultivated area were assigned to it, today the land area is 11 hectares. The priority area in the work of the economy is the cultivation of potatoes (food and seed). The main varieties: Gala, Impala, Zhukovsky, Colette, Natasha, Labella, Picasso, Red Scarlett, Roco, Romano, Sante, Luck.
In 2015, the farm commissioned a modern irrigation complex, the largest in the region, with an irrigated area of 1100 hectares.
In addition to potatoes, the farm grows cabbage, beets, grain, milk and meat. The annual production volume is 90 thousand tons of potatoes, 10 thousand tons of grain crops, 6 thousand tons of milk, 200 tons of meat. The agricultural production employs about 200 employees. About 70% of the production volume is stored in our own storage facilities. The warehouses are equipped with modern high-tech equipment of European production, including an automated packaging complex. The bulk of table potatoes are supplied to chain stores.
LLC "BOGORODITSKY ALLIANCE"
The enterprise was founded in 2008 on the basis of two farms: SPK "Voskhod" and "them. Lenin "and from that moment it is a member of the Malino Group of Companies. The sown area in the first year was 3400 ha. Since 2009, with the support of the Malino agricultural holding together with the Frito Lay Manufacturing company, which produces Lay's chips, the farm has planted 130 hectares of trial potato chips of the following varieties: Lady Claire, Lady Rosetta, Hermes, Saturn. From that moment on, potatoes became the main crop on the farm.
In 2011, the potato planting area increased to 430 ha, and the number of cultivated varieties increased.
In 2014, the farm was recognized as one of the leaders in the elite potato growing industry, producing 70% of the total volume of seed potatoes grown in the Tula region. In the spring of 2014, the company provided seed potatoes to 60 large and small farms across the country from the south to the Ural Mountains.
By 2015, nine potato storages equipped with a high-tech ventilation system, refrigeration units, and an automatic control system were erected on the farm's territory.
Today, the total area of arable land reaches 7000 hectares. The farm specializes in the cultivation of elite seed potatoes, grains and oilseeds.
In 2016, the farm will focus on growing Dutch and German seed potato varieties: Red Scarlett, Impala, Gala, Nevsky, Vega, Molly, Picasso, Riviera, Sifra, Roco, Innovator, Hermes, Lady Claire, Newton, Lady Rosetta, Colomba and romance.
LLC "KIMOVSKY SPACES"
Formed in 2007. The farm is a structural subdivision of the Malino Group of Companies. The main activity is crop production. On ecologically clean soils, 280 km from Moscow, the farm produces winter and spring wheat, malting and feed barley, rapeseed, soybeans, carrots and potatoes (varieties Hermes, Courage, Lady Claire, Lady Rosetta, Saturn). The enterprise cultivates six thousand hectares of land.
Particular attention in the "Kimovskie open spaces" is given to growing potato chips. An area of 400 hectares has been allocated for it. At this site, irrigation equipment is used.
The farm has a modern warehouse complex that allows you to store 80% of manufactured products, as well as a logistics center equipped with lines for washing, polishing and packaging carrots and potatoes. An enterprise can ship up to 180 tons of products per day.
The bulk of the potato produced is delivered to the Kashirsky chip factory Frito Lay Manufacturing (50%).
Material prepared by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Tula region