The section Russian Meat presents analysis of the situation on the pork market. The fall in pig numbers was checked in 2001-2002, but then it rapidly accelerated and has been taking place over the last three years. Over the last 11 months the decline has been observed to slow down - from 16.1% to 4.6%. The decline can be expected to give way to a gradual recovery in livestock numbers in early 2006.
The section Russian Meat presents an analysis of, and forecasts for, the situation on the EU pork market.
The interfacing with retail chains in the section Issue's Feature is described by representatives of suppliers and producers of meat and meat foods.
As part of the Open Meat Market project, the journal features in the section The Issue's Personality an interview with the Governor of the Nizhny Novgorod Region, V.P. Shantsev. In the section Company's Background, the readers can read about Ireland's Agra Trading and Russia's Edilbai.
The section Expert Opinion features findings of a survey presented to the FAO Committee on Agriculture to cover the impact of globalization on the world livestock production and meat market on the whole. A probe undertaken by the Audit Chamber in the Kaliningrad region revealed that it had been used to bring thousands of tonnes of meat into Russia in disregard of quotas and without paying customs duties. This became possible because the region, which is a Special Economic Zone, had failed to impose restrictions on import of all types of poultry meat. So the region was used to bring in mostly back halves of chicken carcasses, which were then cut into two parts, salted and spiced, following which they were sent as locally produced drumsticks to other regions of the country. The section Expert Opinion offers the opinion of experts on the issue.
Once the law on the financial restructuring of agricultural producers is in place, the financial situation of at least 10% of all livestock farmers in the country is expected to improve. For more details about this, see the section News from Parliament.
A probe undertaken by the Audit Chamber in the Kaliningrad region revealed that it had been used to bring thousands of tonnes of meat into Russia in disregard of quotas and without paying customs duties. This became possible because the region, which is a Special Economic Zone, had failed to impose restrictions on import of all types of poultry meat. So the region was used to bring in mostly back halves of chicken carcasses, which were then cut into two parts, salted and spiced, following which they were sent as locally produced drumsticks to other regions of the country. The section Commentary offers the opinion of experts on the issue.
The sausage production stabilized in 1995 and amounts on the average to about 1 mln tonnes a year. There has been observed an increase in demand for canned and semi-finished meat products. The convenience food manufacturers paint a rosy picture of the market outlook, with no restrictions evident for growth in this segment. The wide range of food processing equipment available makes it possible for customers to choose a machine that is best for them. A survey of the equipment market is presented in the section Business Technologies. Today an increasingly higher number of companies in the food industry and agriculture realise that Internet is another dimension where you can gain an advantage over your competitors. The $64,000 question is, How? The answer to this question can also be found in the section Business Technologies.
In late December, the RF Agriculture Ministry, as usual, reviewed the performance of the agribusiness over the year. November 2005 saw two conferences on the development of retail chains in Russia. This year Ingredients Russia 2005 sprawled over an area of 11,000+ sq. meters in the Olimpiisky sports centre. The stands of 300 companies from 25 countries showcased cutting-edge food-processing technologies. More about the events above is in the section Coverage.