After Russia banned several kinds of products imported from countries which have imposed economic sanctions on Russia, the country faced the need to find substitutes for foreign products. As tough as this task is, it nonetheless provides a unique opportunity for Russian producers of food. In particular, this situation allowed Russian fishermen to start cooperating with big distribution chains, which previously they could only dream of. Russia's Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Head of the Federal Agency for Fisheries, Ilya Shestakov, talks about possible consequences the sanctions may have on the market.
According to the official, Russian fishermen will be able to provide buyers will high-quality products next year. "In 2013 we produced 4.3 million tons of fish. This year the figure will be slightly smaller, around 4.28 million tons. The amount of exports is 1.8 million tons, the amount of imports slightly over 1 million tons. This means that we can provide our market with fish," he said.
The official notes that the main problem is that the assortment of products will change. "It's clear that for various reasons we cannot find substitutes for all imported products. For instance, the well-known Atlantic salmon cannot be produced in Russia in the necessary amounts. Speaking about the sanctions, I should say that the amount of banned imports constitutes 462 thousand tons or 45 percent of total fish imports. Mainly these are agriculturally-produced Atlantic salmon, Atlantic herring, mackerel, shrimps and sprats. These kinds of fish constitute 70-75 percent of banned imports," he said.
However, Shestakov believes that many imported products may be substituted by fishermen in Russia's Far East. "The process of substituting these products will not take a long time. The necessary amount is already being produced by Russian fishermen. Far Eastern salmon may substitute for trout. As of last Friday the total amount of exported salmon constituted 657 tons and our fishermen responded appropriately when we asked them to sell their products on the internal market. The deals signed so far are not numerous and we hope that exports of red fish will not be large this year. Atlantic herring may be replaced by far eastern herring. We are now doing our best so that herring produced in the Far East will be able to be sold in the central part of Russia. The same is true for shrimps, flounder and cod. We will still have to import Atlantic salmon and shrimps," the official said.
According to Shestakov, it's a good opportunity for Russian fishermen. "Russian products will be able to be sold in all shops and supermarkets. The distribution chains are now interested in both producers and even fishermen themselves. They are now diversifying their custom and establishing offices in other regions. The retailers are trying to work with producers or wholesale sellers directly in the regions. We hope our fish will be able to replace imports," he said.
