Agricultural exports to Algeria increased by 20% in 2023

The key product exported to Algeria is wheat, with shipments beginning in mid-2021 after a 3-year hiatus. At the end of 2023, 2.5 million tons of cereal were sent to the Republic, which is 91% more than the previous year. Revenue from wheat exports increased by 52%. Thanks to this dynamics, Algeria has risen to 4th place among the leading buyers of Russian wheat after Turkey, Egypt and Bangladesh.

Algeria also ranks 2nd among the largest importers of domestic soybean oil. Product supplies from RUSSIA to the Republic last year decreased by 5.7%, to 180 thousand tons, and EXPORT revenue - by 29%. At the same time, sales of sunflower oil increased by 2.8 times, to 11 thousand tons, in physical terms and 2.2 times in value terms.

In November, barley exports to Algeria resumed after a 2.5-year break . In November and December 2023, 57 thousand tons of barley were shipped to the country.

Algeria has already become a stable trading partner for Russian grain exporters, noted Eduard Zernin, Chairman of the Board of the Union of Grain Exporters. “This was facilitated by the removal of phytosanitary barriers and the active development of direct contacts within the framework of the grain diplomacy strategy. If Algeria annually imports 8-8.5 million tons of wheat, then Russia supplied 2.1 million tons (or 26% of all imports) in the 2022/23 season, and already 1.6 million tons this season. And there is certainly potential to increase supplies,” Zernin said.

There are also prospects for export development for a number of other products. “We are also an important supplier for Algeria in vegetable oils: Russia now provides about 15% of vegetable oil imports, mainly soybean oil. At the same time, it cannot be said that we have any advantages: where the price is more affordable, Algerians buy there,” emphasized Ivan Nalich, Russia’s trade representative in Algeria.

At the same time, it is necessary to take into account that the products of the Russian agro-industrial complex currently supplied to Algeria are mainly raw materials. “Therefore, the end consumer, by and large, does not know about its Russian origin. In my opinion, in parallel with increasing and diversifying the supply of raw materials (cereals, vegetable oils, MILK powder), efforts must be made to find niches for finished products - confectionery, groceries, frozen products, food additives. It should be taken into account that there are many barriers here - high customs duties and non-tariff protective measures, which will require a lot of effort to overcome,” added Nalich.

A significant event was the start of supplies of powdered milk from Russia to the North African country in November 2023. “Algeria is the world’s second-largest importer of dry milk products after CHINA and is an extremely promising market for the export of milk powder by domestic companies,” said Artem Belov , DIRECTOR General of the National Union of Milk Producers. “Suppliers to the Algerian market include such leading global producers as Uruguay, Argentina, the EU , and New Zealand, but from the point of view of price indicators, Russian milk powder can be quite competitive.”

Among the companies that entered the Algerian dairy market is Molvest Group of Companies. “Currently, Algeria is one of the priority export markets for the company. Algeria's import demand for milk powder and ingredients is huge, and the current environment is interesting for domestic producers. Although the first deliveries are carried out at a discount, I think that after some time we will be able to reach a good price level. Moreover, the development of exports to Algeria must be pursued regardless of the current situation in order to secure this large-scale market for the future,” said Anatoly Losev, General Director of Molvest Group of Companies.

According to the Federal Center "Agroexport", in the future, Russian exports of agricultural products to Algeria may exceed $1.5 billion. As was noted at the business mission of Russian exporters to Algeria, held in November 2023, along with grain, our country is ready to increase supplies of dairy and MEAT products, sunflower and rapeseed oil, fish and seafood, food processing products.