According to the regional Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, as of July 20, local farmers harvested about 80 thousand tons of early potatoes (as of this date in 2021 - 56 thousand tons) with an average yield of 350 c/ha. Moreover, the daily increase in the collection these days is 3,5-5 thousand tons.
No less intensive is the collection of vegetable products. As of today, it amounted to 19,3 thousand tons, which is 8% more than in 2021 (17,9 thousand tons). In this segment, the daily increase is 1-1,5 thousand tons.
At the moment, cabbage (12,4 thousand tons - + 21% compared to 2021) and cucumbers (3 thousand tons - + 19%) dominate. There are also excellent indicators for zucchini, pepper, lettuce and eggplant - in total they were harvested 3,6 thousand tons, which is 1,5 times more than last summer (2,4 thousand tons).
The tomato is somewhat out of the picture - it was harvested only 300 tons, which is 26% of last year's figure. But here, as the Ministry of Agriculture assured, there is no need to worry: in the Astrakhan region, the emphasis on tomato is on late varieties, which are harvested in August-September.
European yield
It should be noted that in recent years Astrakhan potato growers have achieved serious results in the cultivation of root crops. Especially in terms of productivity.
According to statistics, 85% of Russian potatoes are grown in personal subsidiary plots and farms. And if in large agricultural enterprises the average yield is 240–300 centners per hectare, then for farmers, as a rule, up to 170 centners per hectare, in household plots - up to 150 centners per hectare. Therefore, it is not surprising that, according to this indicator, the leaders are those regions where agricultural holdings prevail - Tatarstan, Bashkiria, Voronezh, Samara, Penza regions, where the yield is in the range of 280-300 c/ha.
Against this background, the Astrakhan region with a level of up to 350 centners per hectare is real Europe. And this is not hyperbole. Of course, the Astrakhans cannot yet compete with the potato leaders of the Old World in terms of productivity (in the Netherlands, the yield is 447 centners / ha, France - 432 centners / ha, Belgium - 423 centners / ha, Germany 423 centners / ha), but we are superior to countries that have a similar hot and dry summer - Spain (281 c/ha), Portugal (270 c/ha), Italy (255 c/ha).
Major donor for potatoes
And although the areas under potatoes in the Astrakhan region are not large, but due to the mentioned high yield and low consumption of potatoes within the region (within 50-55 thousand tons), it receives a huge supply of the product. This allows the Astrakhan region to be among the donor regions for potatoes over the past decade, and in the 20s of this century - in the top 5.
And now about 85% of potatoes are shipped outside the region. The main consumer regions of the Astrakhan root crop are the Moscow, Leningrad and Sverdlovsk regions. More than 3 tons of potatoes have already been exported to Belarus and Kazakhstan.
The main potato varieties for export are Riviera, Colomba, Red Scarlett, Arizona, Newton, Collete, Rosara, Memphis, La Strada.
Attractive prices
It should be noted that other vegetable products of the Astrakhan region are in great demand. Most Astrakhan vegetables are transported to the three regions mentioned earlier, as well as to Belarus (about 2,8 thousand tons).
By the way, the Astrakhan region is also a donor region for vegetables. The position, of course, is not as significant as for potatoes, but the region is in the top 20. And again, thanks to the high yield of a number of vegetables, which is a record in the Southern Federal District (data for 2021): open ground cucumbers - 374 centners / ha, open ground tomatoes - 642 centners / ha, cabbage - 438 centners / ha, melons and gourds - 377 q/ha.
Buyers are attracted not only by the quality of products, but also by low prices. So, cabbage is offered for 7-10 rubles/kg, which is at the level of last year, and cucumbers - for 18-20 rubles/kg, which is about half the price level of 2021.
The Astrakhan region continues to develop the steppe expanses with a focus on the crop sector. So, since the beginning of the season, the sown area for potatoes and vegetables has increased by 2,4 thousand hectares compared to 2021.