The Ministry of Agriculture prepared a report “On the progress and results of the implementation of the state program for agricultural development in 2017”. According to the agency, in 2018 the harvest will be lower: for cereals by 15%, for sugar beets - by 24%.
According to the report, in 2018, farmers will collect 115 million tons of grain and legumes and 39,3 million tons of sugar beets. Experts note that the sowing campaign this year is being delayed due to cold weather. The Ministry of Agriculture notes that yields may be higher under favorable weather conditions. It is also important that this year the cultivated area for sugar beets was reduced by 100 thousand hectares, to 1,1 million hectares. This is due to the overproduction of last year, when prices for sugar and grain fell sharply due to market saturation. Reducing the area will help to avoid a repetition of the situation.
In addition, the Ministry of Agriculture also reported data on the expected harvest of vegetables. Potatoes this year will be harvested by only 0,5% more (29,7 million tons), other vegetable products - 3,6% more (17 million tons).