“You know that a state of emergency has been declared in many Russian regions. But we will overcome; we will allocate requisite resources to agriculture, as I have said. They will include direct subsidies, grants, government guarantees, loan subsidies, and grain sales, primarily fodder grain, to livestock-breeding farms from the grain reserve, and we will also subsidise the loans our farms will take out to finance such purchases. In all, there is a large package of support measures. We only need regional leaders and farm directors to act quickly and energetically to submit expert substantiation for the size of such support.”
“Several years ago we set ourselves the goal of ensuring that quality and affordable domestically produced food is available in Russia. We adopted a state development programme for agribusiness and allocated over 300 billion roubles from the federal budget for its implementation in 2008 and 2009. Allocations totalling 107 billion roubles have been approved for 2010. We can say with confidence that this investment and other measures designed to support agriculture have produced the desired result.”
"Poultry breeding has been developing fast in the past few years. It posted a 12% growth in 2009, and now we can satisfy over 75% of the demand. But we still have to import nearly 25%, which is too much. However, I want to say again that we are working hard to replace imports. I hope that government support has contributed to this trend; we have allocated long-term investment loans for the construction of farms and subsidised interest on loans".
"You know that the new law on trade has come into force, stipulating strict deadlines for payments to the suppliers of agricultural products. We have set the strictest deadline for perishables, 10 days, I think. I hope this measure will have a positive effect, and will help to strengthen the financial situation of agricultural enterprises".
"At the same time, we are working not only in the economy but also in the legal sphere. Agricultural producers and companies that process agricultural raw materials want to settle their relations with retail chains. As you know, a relevant law is being considered in the State Duma. This law covers issues of great importance to farmers. One of them concerns payment for delivered products. If the lifetime of bread is 72 hours and is even shorter for milk, money for them should be transferred to the producers without delay or else they will have no working capital, no money to produce these products or for their economic operation. But the money was delayed for a month and even longer. As of now, payment for perishables is to be transferred within ten days, for other products within 30 days, and for spirits within 45 days, but we will reconsider this."
"Agriculture, which some in the previous years called "the black hole" of the economy and so on, is a growth area today. It will grow by 0.5% this year, and in some areas, for example, in livestock, it will grow by 10%. It should have been still greater, but that is how it looks on paper: Last year we had a record grain crop of 108 million metric tons. This year it will be large too, at 93 million tons, but because it is less than last year, on paper the indicators have gone down. But on the whole, I repeat, agriculture will grow by 0.5%."
“We have big support programmes for agriculture, such as tax breaks and subsidies. Last year we issued large subsidies, which covered 60% of spending. Early this year we increased them to 80%, and in livestock breeding to 100%, at the request of farmers and in view of problems due to the economic downturn. In general, I would like to tell all those present here, including farmers, that in 2009 we have issued 700 billion roubles ($24.1 billion) of loans to agriculture through different channels. This is more than ever before, but then, agriculture has never reported such good results before either. We will continue to implement these programmes.”
"The 2012 APEC forum is also a good opportunity to concentrate our resources, solve the many problems of our largest metropolis in the Far East and make the city's residents' lives more comfortable. We can position Vladivostok as Russia's "gateway to the Pacific" and a promising venue for international cooperation."
"The fulfilment of all these plans will enable us to hold an important event - the 2012 APEC forum. This upcoming summit is a significant political and economic event for the entire Asia-Pacific region. Certainly, a successful event will enable Russia to enhance its international standing and will help in making additional contacts with our partners in the region."
"Seasonal changes in production volumes and the balance of purchasing prices are important elements of the dairy market. This problem could be solved through regular purchasing and trade interventions. We plan to approve a Government resolution on this issue today. The state will buy surplus products to prevent a plunge of milk purchasing prices. On the other hand, the sale of previously purchased products will prevent unjustified hikes of retail prices."
