Russian producers target new market for dairy exports

Accreditation by Algeria of a plant in Novosibirsk “opens the gates to Africa,” the region’s agriculture minister has said

A dairy factory in Novosibirsk, Russia’s third largest city, has been accredited to export its products to Algeria, Evgeny Leshchenko, the regional agriculture minister announced on Wednesday. 

Chanovsky Butter Factory, which is already accredited to ship to Kazakhstan, will now be able to supply goods to Algeria, a development that Leshchenko says “opens the gates to Africa.” 

“A fundamentally new direction is Africa, a fundamentally new position is livestock products…particularly dry dairy products,” the minister said. 

He pointed out that entering the African market would significantly boost milk processing volumes at the currently idle facilities.   

Leshchenko highlighted that the region could export four products: skimmed milk powder, whole milk powder, and two types of butter. 

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In 2023, the region exported approximately 830 tons of raw milk every day, he mentioned. 

Novosibirsk Region exported 1,890,000 tons of agricultural products to 56 countries in 2023, which marked a 33% increase over 2022. Among the top importers of products from the region are Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Türkiye, and Kyrgyzstan. 

In addition to boosting trade ties, Russia has also donated 200,000 tons of food aid to six African nations. Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Mali, Somalia, Central African Republic, and Eritrea have each received up to 50,000 tons of grain from Russia. 

During a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Malian Interim President Assimi Goita expressed his gratitude for the wheat and fertilizers sent by Moscow, the press service of the Kremlin reported on Wednesday.