Russian grain farmers are anticipating a potentially record-breaking harvest during the current agriculture season of over 150mn tonnes of grain, according to Arkady Zlochevsky, the president of the Russian Grain Union, speaking on November 13. (chart)

Zlochevsky expressed optimism about the grain harvest this season, which runs from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024. He said the association expects the gross yield this year will amount to 145mn tonnes, excluding any contributions from new territories.

According to earlier reports, Russian farmers have already harvested 147mn tonnes of grain as of November 7, including the new territories in Ukraine, with the export potential for the 2023-2024 agricultural season standing at 65mn tonnes, First Deputy Agriculture Minister Oksana Lut said on November 8.

The export potential in the current agricultural season stands at 65mn tonnes of grain, Lut said. The export quota for 2024, which the government will impose on February 15, stands at 24mn tonnes, including the preferences for the new territories, she said.

Zlochevsky noted that his 145mn tonnes is a conservative estimate and suggested that the actual grain harvest could exceed 150mn tonnes from just Russian territories, if the Ukrainian grain is factored in.

This is a significant increase, as Russia's Agriculture Ministry had earlier estimated the country's grain harvest for 2023 at 123mn tonnes, which included 78mn tonnes of wheat.

These results put Russia on course to set a new record, as in 2022 Russian farmers produced an all-time high record harvest of 153mn-155mn tonnes of grain, which is nearly 20mn tonnes more than Russia was producing in the pre-war period.