The North Caucasian Federal District includes 7 subjects of the federation:
• The Republic of Dagestan,
• The Republic of Ingushetia,
• Kabardino-Balkarian Republic,
• Karachay-Cherkess Republic,
• Republic of North Ossetia - Alania,
• Chechen Republic,
• Stavropol region.
Territory: 172,4 thousand square meters km
Population: 9 967 301 people, of which 49, 91% are residents of rural areas.
Geographical position: the south of the European part of Russia, the central and eastern parts of the North Caucasus.
Climate: on the plains - continental, dry. In the foothills - more moderate and humid, in the mountains - moderately cool, in the basins - warmer. Winters are snowless, summers are dry and hot. The average January temperature is -3,2°C (up to -10°C in the mountains), +20,4°C in July (up to +14°C in the mountains). Precipitation is 300-500 millimeters per year (on the plains), in the foothills - over 600 millimeters.
Relief: most of the area is occupied by the steppe zone (in the northern and central parts of the district). The foothill zone is to the south and stretches from the northwest to the southeast, gradually turning into the mountain spurs of the Caucasus.
Soils: 26% - chestnut soils and complexes, meadow-chestnut soils, more than 25% - chernozems and meadow-chernozem soils. Over 6%
occupy meadow soils, mostly solonetsous and solonchakous, more than 4% - brown and meadow-brown, another 3% - floodplain
soil. Sands make up more than 4% of the district's territory, solonetzes and solonchaks - more than 1%. Over 7% of the soil cover is represented by burozems, more than 20% by mountain-meadow and mountain-meadow-steppe soils (data from the Soil Geographic Database of Russia Information System).
Agricultural land area: 3153847 ha.
Agriculture - one of the leading sectors of the economy of the district (fourth place among the districts of the Russian Federation in the production of vegetables, grain
and legumes: about 15,6% vegetables, 10% cereals and legumes, 4,7% potatoes and sugar beets).
Пochvenno-climatic conditions favorable for growing potatoes. Throughout the region, it is possible to obtain two crops per season. The main problems hindering the development of potato growing in the North Caucasus Federal District are: the lack of high-quality seed material of zoned varieties, the lack of modern equipment, and the shortage of storage areas.
THE REPUBLIC OF DAGESTAN
Territory: 50,27 thousand sq. km
Located on the northeastern slopes of the Greater Caucasus and part of the Caspian lowland, 67% of the territory is occupied by agricultural land.
The development of agriculture largely determines the way of life of more than half of the population: about 55% of citizens live in
countryside.
Potatoes in Dagestan are cultivated in all natural and climatic zones, from high-mountain sloping lands located up to 2500
meters above sea level, to the Caspian plains below the level of the world ocean (-28 m).
The production of almost 98% of potatoes is concentrated in personal subsidiary plots of the population. Every year, under the cultivation of this crop in
about 19 thousand hectares are allotted to the republic (on farms of all categories). By October 1, 2021, potatoes were harvested from 18,1 thousand hectares in the republic,
339,4 thousand tons were dug up with a yield of 187 centners per hectare.
The main potato-growing regions are Levashinsky (more than 3 thousand hectares under potatoes), Akushinsky (2,1 thousand hectares), Khasavyurtovsky (1430 hectares)
and Buynaksky (1280 ha).
In the organized sector, 2021 hectares of arable land are allocated for growing potatoes in 400. According to experts of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food
Dagestan, in order to cultivate this crop in large areas, considerable investments are required, as well as the availability of specialized equipment. To stimulate the expansion of potato growing areas, the department intends to subsidize part of the cost of purchased agricultural machinery.
A serious deterrent to the development of potato growing in the republic is also the lack of high-quality planting material. The soil and climatic conditions of Dagestan are favorable for growing seed potatoes, including the organization of primary seed production on a virus-free basis. But while a significant amount of planting material comes to the republic from other regions of the Russian Federation, it is often of poor quality and non-ranged varieties, which affects the yield and collection volumes.
It should be noted that most of the lands of the republic, primarily arable land, are located in areas of insufficient moisture, where it is almost impossible to engage in agricultural activities without the use of irrigation. According to the Analytical Department of the Administration of the Federation Council (Analytical Bulletin No. 4 (764), Dagestan is one of the largest historical regions
irrigated agriculture, which accounts for about 10% of all irrigated land in the Russian Federation. The total area of irrigated land in the republic is 396 thousand hectares. Today, about 70% of the crop production of the republic is produced
on irrigated lands. The yield of potatoes grown under irrigation reaches 60-70 t/ha.
According to Dagestanstat (Territorial body of the Federal State Statistics Service for the Republic of Dagestan), in all categories of farms:
Year | 2018 | 1019 | 2020 |
sown area under potatoes, ha | 19818 | 18972 | 18000 |
gross harvest, thousand tons | 356,2 | 353,4 | 357,0 |
productivity, c.ha | 179,8 | 186,3 | 186,2 |
KABARDINO-BALKARIAN REPUBLIC
12,5 thousand square meters Km
It is located in the northern foothills of the central part of the Caucasus and on the adjacent plain. Farmland occupies about 55,8% of the territory. The main direction of crop production is the cultivation of cereals and leguminous crops.
The main volumes of production are concentrated in Zolsky, Prokhladnensky, Baksansky, Maysky and Tersky districts. According to the Ministry of Agriculture of Kabardino-Balkaria, about 52% of the total production falls on the industrial sector and 48% on private farms.
In 2021, by October 1, due to difficult weather conditions, the crop was harvested from only 6,3 thousand hectares (on farms of all categories), 110
thousand tons of products with a yield of 173 q/ha. Agricultural organizations and peasant farms harvested potatoes from an area of 4 thousand hectares, the gross harvest amounted to 0,02 thousand tons with a yield of 0,7 centners per hectare.
Soil and climatic conditions (temperature, humidity, precipitation, non-proliferation of carriers of viral diseases, etc.) in the foothill and mountainous zones of the republic are recognized as optimal for the cultivation of seed potatoes.
According to Severo-Kavkazstat (Department of the Federal State Statistics Service for the North Caucasian Federal District), in Kabardino-Balkaria:
Year | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
in farms of all categories | |||
sown area under potatoes, ha | 8400 | 8300 | 7900 |
productivity, centner/ha | — | 235,5 | 236,1 |
in agricultural organizations and peasant farms: | |||
sown area under potatoes, ha | 2500 | 2800 | 2500 |
gross harvest, thousand tons | 87,9 | 103,8 | 93,4 |
Selection and seed production of potatoes are important areas of work of the Institute of Agriculture of the KBSC RAS. Scientists of the Institute together with the Federal Research Center for Potato named after A.G. Lorkha (Moscow) are engaged in the creation and introduction of high-yielding varieties into the agricultural production of the region. As a result of joint work in recent years, five varieties of potatoes have appeared, adapted to
local soil and climatic conditions with a yield of 30-35 tons per hectare: Goryanka, Nart-1, Zolsky, Musinsky and Nalchik. All of them are included in the State Register of Breeding Achievements of the Russian Federation.
The largest producer of seed potatoes in Kabardino-Balkaria is the Zolsky Potato Company.
Much attention in the republic is paid to the development of land reclamation.
KARACHAYEV-CIRCASSIAN REPUBLIC
14,3 thousand square meters Km
It is located in the foothills of the northwestern Caucasus. The share of the rural population is 57,7%.
The Karachay-Cherkess Republic differs significantly from other regions of the North Caucasus in terms of land area structure, since for
less than half of the territory is suitable for agriculture - 786,9 thousand hectares. At the same time, arable land occupies only 155 thousand hectares, or 26,6% of agricultural land.
The main potato production is concentrated in households.
In 2021, 7441 hectares are occupied by potatoes in Karachay-Cherkessia, of which 6063 hectares are in households, 936 hectares are in peasant farms, and 442 hectares are in agricultural organizations. By October 1, the crop was harvested from 6245 hectares, 79,6 thousand tons of products were received with a yield of 127,4 centners per hectare.
REPUBLIC OF NORTH OSSETIA - ALANIA
8 thousand square meters Km
It is located in the central part of the North Caucasus. Agricultural land is 297,5 thousand hectares, of which arable land
- 183,7 thousand hectares.
The main agricultural crops cultivated in the republic are cereals and legumes, as well as potatoes.
The 2021 season was difficult for North Ossetia, due to weather conditions, farmers had to greatly shift harvesting dates. Besides, in
The region experienced a severe labor shortage. As a result, by October 1, in farms of all categories, potatoes were harvested from an area of 2,2 thousand hectares.
ha, 34,6 thousand tons were harvested with a yield of 157,1 q/ha. The projected collection volume is 96,2 thousand tons. In the industrial sector, potatoes are harvested
from an area of 0,2 thousand hectares, 3,5 thousand tons were harvested with a yield of 226,8 q/ha.
Next season, according to the forecast of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Republic, the area of potato fields will be increased by 900 hectares, which will help reduce prices for products in the region.
North Ossetia is one of the leading regions of Russia in the production of seed potatoes. Fat-Agro LLC is the main producer of pure virus-free potato seed material of elite varieties of both domestic and foreign selection. The volume of seed products produced by Fat-Agro LLC exceeds the needs of the republic, therefore, microplants, microtubers, minitubers, elite and seeds of the first reproduction are sold by the enterprise both within the country and abroad. Production of reproduction
potato seeds in the republic is also engaged in Kadgaron-Agro LLC.
Land reclamation is developing in the region, in 2021 it is planned to put into operation more than 2 thousand hectares of irrigated land.
THE REPUBLIC OF INGUSHETIA
3,6 thousand square meters Km
It is located on the northern slopes of the foothills of the Greater Caucasus Range (in its central part) and on the adjacent small
ridges - Tersky, Sunzhensky and Skalist.
According to Severo-Kavkazstat (Department of the Federal State Statistics Service for the North Caucasian Federal District), in the Karachay-Cherkess Republic:
Year | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
in farms of all categories | |||
sown area under potatoes, ha | 8700 | 7800 | 7900 |
productivity, centner/ha | 123,8 | 107,9 | 104,9 |
in agricultural organizations and peasant farms: | |||
sown area under potatoes, ha | 500 | 200 | 200 |
gross harvest, thousand tons | 4,0 | 3,4 | 1,7 |
productivity, centner/ha | 179,8 | 186,3 | 0,286 |
Most of the population (57,5%) lives in rural areas.
The total area of agricultural land in Ingushetia is just over 150 thousand hectares, of which about half is arable land. The republic specializes in the cultivation of grain crops (wheat, buckwheat, etc.), sunflower, vegetables and potatoes.
In 2021, the area planted with potatoes in farms of all categories amounted to 3,7 thousand hectares.
According to Severo-Kavkazstat (Department of the Federal State Statistics Service for the North Caucasian Federal District), in the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania:
Year | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
in farms of all categories | |||
sown area under potatoes, ha | 5000 | 4300 | 4100 |
productivity, centner/ha | 99,3 | 89,2 | 96,1 |
in agricultural organizations and peasant farms: | |||
sown area under potatoes, ha | 2800 | 2400 | 1100 |
gross harvest, thousand tons | 32,9 | 26,9 | — |
According to Severo-Kavkazstat (Department of the Federal State Statistics Service for the North Caucasian Federal District), in Ingushetia:
Year | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
in farms of all categories | |||
sown area under potatoes, ha | 3100 | 3000 | 2700 |
productivity, centner/ha | 37,3 | 33,0 | 30,2 |
in agricultural organizations and peasant farms: | |||
sown area under potatoes, ha | 703 | 750 | 500 |
gross harvest, thousand tons | 4,0 | 0,4 | 0,2 |
CHECHEN REPUBLIC
16,1 thousand square meters Km
It occupies the northern slopes of the Greater Caucasus, as well as the adjacent steppes and plains. Most of the population (63,6%) lives
in the countryside. In the structure of agricultural land, arable land occupies 14 hectares. Potato cultivation is carried out in all mountainous regions.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture of the Chechen Republic, in 2020, 600 hectares were allocated for potatoes in the industrial sector.
The region often suffers from drought, therefore, it pays considerable attention to the development of melioration. In 2021, the Chechen Republic plans to put into circulation 3 hectares of irrigated land, as well as 820 hectares of retired agricultural land.
According to Chechenstat (Territorial body of the Federal State Statistics Service for the Chechen Republic):
Year | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
in farms of all categories: | |||
sown area under potatoes and vegetable melons, ha | 12600 | 13600 | 11700 |
gross harvest, thousand tons | 32,1 | 32,7 | 38,7 |
productivity, centner/ha | 100,4 | 99,9 | 94,5 |
in agricultural organizations and peasant farms: | |||
sown area under potatoes and vegetable melons, ha | 5600 | 6500 | 4300 |
According to Severo-Kavkazstat (Department of the Federal State Statistics Service for the North Caucasian Federal District), in the Stavropol Territory:
Year | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
in farms of all categories: | |||
sown area under potatoes, ha | 14000 | 13600 | 13100 |
gross harvest, thousand tons | 232,5 | 217,6 | 218,0 |
in agricultural organizations and peasant farms: | |||
sown area under potatoes and vegetable melons, ha | 5000 | 5500 | 5200 |
gross harvest, thousand tons | 115,5 | 113,0 | 137,0 |
STAVROPOL REGION
66,5 thousand square meters Km
It is located in the central part of Ciscaucasia and on the northern slope of the Greater Caucasus.
It is one of the largest grain-producing regions in Russia. But it is also famous for the production of vegetables (onions, carrots, cabbage, beets, cucumbers, tomatoes) and potatoes. They are engaged in 241 agricultural producers (45 agricultural enterprises and 196 peasant farms). Agricultural enterprises of the region are the main producers of such crops as potatoes (50%), onions (46%), carrots (40%), while 60% of beets are produced by peasant farms.
The main potato-growing enterprises are located in the Ipatovsky, Predgorny, Krasnogvardeysky and Kirov districts. The most popular in the region are such varieties as Colomba, Gala, Romano, Red Scarlett.
In 2021, potatoes are planted on 6 hectares in the industrial sector. Farmers started harvesting late varieties of potatoes
at the end of September, when the weather was fine. According to agricultural administrations (departments) of municipal and urban districts,
At the beginning of October, 3,2 thousand tons of potatoes were harvested from an area of 90,4 thousand hectares, with a yield of 280 q/ha. In total, it was planned to harvest 2021 thousand tons of potatoes in 138.
One of the most important conditions for increasing the yield of potatoes in the region is the development of elite and reproductive seed production.
Meristemnye Kultury LLC is the only organization in the Stavropol Territory engaged in primary potato seed production based on tissue culture. The enterprise annually produces 1-2 thousand tons of super elite seed potatoes. As a result of breeding work, five new varieties were bred.
Irrigation development is considered the key to economic stability of farmers in the region.
This year, 14 new irrigation projects are being implemented in 26 districts of the region on an area of more than 12 hectares. Until 2024, the Stavropol Territory plans to increase the irrigation area by a total of 52 hectares. Thus, in comparison with 2016, the irrigation area will increase by 2,5 times - by 73 thousand hectares. Activities in this direction are already underway: for 2022, new projects planned for commissioning have been developed and put into operation. They will cover an area of 11,5 thousand hectares.