MOSCOW, April 19 The grain harvest in Russia in 2023, taking into account new regions, is expected to be 123 million tons, of which 78 million tons are wheat, the Minister of Agriculture said RF Dmitry Patrushev.
The sowing campaign in the Russian Federation is taking place normally. We look forward to a decent and, what is very important, a balanced harvest. We expect that in 2023 the volume of grain, taking into account the new regions, will be about 123 million tons, of which about 78 million tons is wheat,» Patrushev said at a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin with members of the Russian government. The minister stressed that such a level of gross harvest will fully ensure national food security and continue deliveries of products to foreign partners in the required declared volume.
In 2023, the total sown area, taking into account new subjects, will exceed 85 million hectares: according to Patrushev, field work is now being carried out in 50 regions, and farmers from all subjects of the Russian Federation should enter the fields by mid-May. The share of winter crops in a normal state is 93%, the dynamics of spring sowing is higher than last year: about 5 million hectares have already been sown, in addition, the pace of planting potatoes and sowing vegetables is high. The minister also noted the absence of any problems in the course of field work, including in new regions: there are no significant interruptions in the provision of plant protection products, fuels and lubricants and agricultural machinery.
«In the new subjects of the Russian Federation, winter crops for the harvest of 2023 are sown on an area of about 1.3 million hectares, of which 95% are in good and satisfactory condition. The planned area of spring sowing is 1.8 million hectares, at the moment it has been carried out on an area of more than 200 thousand hectares,» Patrushev said. The main crops for the new regions are cereals and sunflowers; in the Kherson region, the share of vegetable crops is significant.
In 2022, the Russian Federation updated the record for gross grain harvest — it was harvested 157.676 million tons, which is 29.9% more than in 2021 — and wheat — 104.237 million tons, by 37% more.