Russia may face shortage and “wild rise in price” of beef – expert

If the Russian Federation bans the import of beef, this will lead to its rise in price by three to five times. This was stated by the HEAD of the peasant farm, a member of the information policy committee of the regional branch of the "Party of Growth" in the Samara region, Kirill Ermolenko. This is how he commented on the initiative of State Duma deputy Andrei Lugovoy (LDPR), who proposed to ban the import of MILK and beef to the Russian Federation in order to increase its own production.

“Of course, the initiative is promising, but you can’t call it anything other than populism,” Yermolenko stated. — We really import a lot of beef. Only according to official data, 40%, mainly from Belarus. And the moratorium on imports will really stimulate an increase in the number of cattle for slaughter. But at what cost? To get a sufficient number of animals for slaughter, you must at least have a sufficient number of cows to cover (this procedure takes 1-2 months for livestock breeders). Then the cow bears a calf, this is another 9 months. Next, we need to raise bulls - depending on the breed, this will take 18-24 months. Then comes the final fattening, and this is another three months. In total, just to raise cattle for slaughter, we need at least 27 months (which is almost 2.5 years). Is the population of RUSSIA ready to live in a shortage of beef, despite the fact that it will provoke a wild rise in prices by 3-5 times? Of course not".

According to Yermolenko, the Russian Federation is not yet ready for such drastic measures, and therefore, if a moratorium on imported beef is introduced, then only gradually.

“And the number of cows today is still in short supply, and it will take at least 10 years to replenish it with the support that comes from the state,” the expert summed up.