In 2025, the pace of growth in the agricultural sector is slowing down, and experts and participants in the agricultural market emphasized that without overcoming systemic problems, it will be difficult to expect positive dynamics in 2-3 years, in a conversation with RBC Rostov.
Last week at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2025), the Minister of Economic Development of Russia, Maxim Reshetnikov, expressed his opinion on the presence of a "recession threat" in the economy. Finance Minister Anton Siluanov called the current economic situation a "cooling off," but added that after cold times, summer always comes.
The CEO of the agroholding "Steppe," Andrey Neduzhko, noted that the agricultural sector has significant potential but has faced systemic difficulties. One of the main obstacles to its development has been the lack of qualified personnel and high interest rates, which undermined financing and complicated the current operations of companies.
In Neduzhko's opinion, the government actively provides comprehensive support to the agricultural sector, including preferential financing, promotion of local producers, as well as educational reform to provide new talent. He believes that thanks to the efforts of federal and regional authorities directed at overcoming systemic and operational problems in the agricultural sector and providing direct support to agribusiness, crisis phenomena will be overcome.
The CEO mentioned that the major risks for the industry today are high financing costs that increase expenses and reduce the profitability of agricultural businesses.
Andrey Neduzhko highlights the growth potential of agriculture in developing domestic production, import substitution, increasing value-added in the processing sector, and developing digital solutions.
Evaluating the current state of the industry, the CEO of the Firm "August," Mikhail Danilov, refers to it as a systematic cooling off. He points out that investments are frozen, the renewal of agricultural machinery is halted, and agriculture is living off reserves created ten years ago thanks to a smart state policy. In his opinion, the last three years represent the inertia of previous growth, accompanied by a decline.
The head of the Firm "August" emphasizes that problems in the agricultural sector cannot be solved by overly simple methods. He claims that in the current situation, opening classes for agrarians will not stop the decline in profitability in crop production.
The President of the Regional Association of Peasant (Farm) Farms (AKKOR), Alexander Rodin, emphasizes the importance of developing rural territories instead of increasing agricultural production. He notes that at present, providing conditions for the development of villages is possible only through the development of small businesses, in particular, farm households.
According to Rodin, the state's agricultural policy should focus on preserving the existing settlement system by encouraging farm households. He believes that the development of rural territories contributes to solving the demographic crisis and preserving the rural population.
