Production of oilseeds in the Chelyabinsk region will be based on domestic seeds

In the Chelyabinsk region, the production of oilseeds is increasing. The emphasis in the forthcoming sowing campaign will be on oilseeds of domestic selection. For this, a seed plant for the production of oilseeds on the basis of the Beryozka farm operates in the region. The region is also building cooperation with major Russian manufacturers in this area.
As Aleksey Kobylin, Minister of Agriculture of the Chelyabinsk Region, noted at the regional agricultural meeting, in 2021 the wedge of oilseeds (sunflower, rapeseed, flax) in the region increased one and a half times to 311 thousand hectares. For the first time in the history of the region, a record harvest of 178,000 tons of oilseeds was harvested (66,000 tons more than the previous year's harvest). The farmers intend to maintain these indicators in 2022. Oilseeds are high-margin crops, which are always in demand in the oil and fat industry and in fodder production.
One of the leading farms for growing oilseeds in the Chelyabinsk region is the Beryozka farm, located in the steppe zone of the region, in the Chesmensky district. Since 2020, a seed plant for the production of seeds of oilseeds, cereals and perennial grasses of domestic varieties of high reproductions with a total capacity of over 3 thousand tons has been operating on the basis of the farm.
Last year, the farm increased oilseeds (sunflower, flax, colza) by almost a thousand hectares, and the decision turned out to be absolutely correct: in arid conditions, oilseeds gave a good harvest. At the regional agricultural meeting, the DIRECTOR of the enterprise, Denis Shumskikh, spoke about the results of the tests of sunflower varieties and hybrids on the experimental site of the farm:
“Sunflower has been grown on our farm for 20 years, it is a key crop for us, on which the farm relies from an economic point of view. Together with the Ministry of Agriculture of the region, we have been laying plots for two years now. In 2021, experiments were laid on 16 hybrids and two varieties. The predecessor of sunflower in these fields was wheat. The soil was cultivated with a harrow and a cultivator in order to retain moisture, sowing was carried out at the optimum time. The weather conditions were difficult: wind activity, heat, but the rain stopped earlier than in 2020. All hybrids and varieties yielded more than 15 centners per hectare. Domestic hybrids took the lead. The absolute leader is the Krechet hybrid from Schelkovo Agrokhim. This year we plan to lay experiments on 25 hybrids. We have new partners, including Agroplazma, Krasnodar.
A long-term partner of the region in terms of developing additional programs for oilseeds and processing oilseeds can be the Efko Group of Companies, the largest producer and processor of oilseeds in RUSSIA.
“We rank first in Russia in terms of sunflower oil exports, specialized fats, soap products, and second in mayonnaise production. One of the well-known brands of the company is Sloboda. The company plans to build a plant in Togliatti, and we are interested in neighboring regions to increase the production of oilseeds. The company, for its part, supports agricultural producers in various ways - in the supply of seeds, plant protection products, etc., - said Vitaly Maslov, HEAD of the seed production department at Efko Group.
According to Vitaly Maslov, together with the company, oilseed production in the region can be increased to 420,000 tons. Moreover, the region has its own powerful processing enterprises, the demand for raw materials is very high.