On August 31, participants of the session “Prospects of rapeseed production and processing in the Leningrad Region. New approaches to agribusiness” included Andrey Golovanov, founder of Agroinvest LLC; Sergey Tuchin, General Director of RASRAPS Association; Artur Khairullin, agro-expert of field crop production, technologist of oilseed crops cultivation; Vladimir Bezrukov, General Director of SPb Isotop.

Now Russia ranks sixth in terms of rapeseed sown area – 2.1 million hectares out of 42 million hectares of the global area. “The sown area of the Leningrad Region is 218 thousand hectares, of which autumn sowing is 6.6%. It is a huge potential for development: we can and should increase winter sowing. And given the excellent climatic conditions of the region for rapeseed and availability of organic fertilizers, I think that by 2027 sown areas in the Leningrad Region can double and reach 10 thousand hectares, with a yield of 3 tons per hectare,” said Agroinvest LLC founder Andrey Golovanov. He predicts that with due support from the regional authorities and the system of subsidies, rapeseed production in the region can grow to 100 thousand tons per year.

Sergey Tuchin, Head of the RASRAPS Association, drew attention to the fact that there is no risk of rapeseed overproduction, as there is a huge market for this crop both in Russia and abroad. Golovanov agrees with this opinion – according to him, rapeseed cake and meal are in demand as fodder in livestock breeding, and rapeseed oil is a promising product for export to the markets of China and South-East Asia.

Deputy Chairman of the Committee for Agro-Industrial and Fishery Complex of the Leningrad Region – Head of the Department for the Development of Agricultural Industries Andrey Reshetov, in his turn, noted that livestock breeding is a key area for the region. “And of course, for the development of the livestock industry, we also have to develop the production of protein feed using our own raw materials. In this sense, domestic rapeseed is the only alternative to imported supplies of soybeans,” emphasized the deputy head of the committee.

Vladimir Bezrukov, General Director of Tenex-Trading-Service LLC (a structure of Rosatom State Corporation engaged in the export of agricultural products), believes that the Leningrad Region also has great potential in terms of logistics for rapeseed and its derivatives. “We see that the logistics of rapeseed products through ports in the North-West is more profitable than through railway crossings in the Far East. In this sense, it is another advantage for rapeseed production in the Leningrad Region,” Bezrukov emphasized. It is rapeseed and rapeseed oil that have export potential for the Chinese market, he said. “The problem of processing does stop the producers in the NWFD, but there are partners who are now developing the processing capacities, there are facilities in the Central District. The point is to increase the production of this crop,” Bezrukov said. He also informed that his company is ready to take on the purchase of rapeseed and its products, and pre-finance the production.

The participants of the meeting came to the conclusion that comprehensive support can bring the sector to the forefront in terms of intensive rapeseed production and yields, while proximity to transportation infrastructure will provide access to global export routes.