Beef (Russian market)

Animal husbandry in Russia

Main article: Animal husbandry in Russia

Meat exports and imports in Russia

Main article: Meat exports and imports in Russia

2022: 3.2% reduction in beef production to 1.62 million tonnes

Beef production in Russia in 2022 amounted to 1.62 million tons, which is 3.2% less than a year earlier. Analysts of the market research agency GuideMarket spoke about the market situation in August 2023.

According to them, beef production in Russia is an important segment of the agricultural industry and plays a significant role in meeting the needs of the population in meat. However, the latest data on beef production in the country raises certain concerns.

At the same time, as researchers note, beef production in slaughter weight in farms and agricultural organizations in 2022 increased by 10.4%. This indicates an increase in the role of small and medium-sized producers in the industry and their contribution to the total production of beef, analysts explain. According to them, one of the main reasons for the reduction in beef production was a decrease in demand against the background of food inflation, which affects the availability of beef as such.

Demand is directly related to household incomes and affordability. Currently, we see high inflation expectations in both developed and developing countries. Rising prices are forcing consumers to switch to cheaper products and could lead to lower demand for beef. Those buyers who could become active consumers of beef may postpone the change of their habits and preferences for the time being, "said Konstantin Korneev, executive director of Rincon Management.

According to Interfax, the leading beef producers in the Russian Federation - Bryansk Meat Company, Zarechnoye and Orenbiv completed last 2022 with net losses. Moreover, the Bryansk Meat Company went into loss after net profit in 2021, Zarechnoye and Orenbiv reduced the negative indicator.^[1]

2020: Beef consumption in Russia decreased by 3.4%, to 1.94 million tons

In 2020, beef consumption in Russia amounted to 1.94 million tons, which is 3.4% less than a year earlier. The indicator turned out to be the lowest in 10 years. The demand for this meat in the country has been declining for the second year in a row, according to the data of the Center for Industry Expertise of Rosselkhozbank.

As Kommersant writes with reference to the head of the National Meat Association Sergei Yushin, the decline in 2020 was indeed and is associated with restrictions due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, in particular with the closure of restaurants, a massive transition to remote work and uncertainty in future revenues, due to which customers were forced to save on inexpensive protein products, including pork and poultry.

In 2020, beef consumption in Russia decreased by 3.4%, to 1.94 million tons

According to the head of the Center for Industry Expertise Andrei Dalnov, the negative dynamics in the Russian beef market is associated with a reduction in the production of cattle in personal subsidiary farms.

It is noted that the decrease in consumption falls on the meat of dairy breeds of livestock, while people buy meat of meat and premium breeds in large volumes, in connection with which the President of Agrifood Strategies Albert Davleev predicts that beef meat will enter the segment of more premium, and the number of dairy breeds of livestock will be reduced.

The National Meat Association calculated that consumption fell mainly in the dairy breed sector, which accounts for 80% of the market. But the demand for meat breeds over the past seven years has grown fivefold, to 300 thousand tons. Of these, 30 thousand tons fell on premium cuts used for expensive steaks.

However, the demand for beef directly depends on the dynamics of the income of Russians and the lifting of restrictions on hotels and restaurants, industry representatives interviewed by the newspaper indicated.^[2]

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