The share of new markets, including sub-Saharan Africa, in Russia's grain exports has enhanced significantly, Chairman of the Russian Union of Grain Exporters, Eduard Zernin, told Russian media.
He highlighted an increase in the share of Asia and Latin America in Russia's grain supplies.
"We have rediscovered the markets of Indonesia, Morocco and Eritrea, and we have significantly increased the supply of forage crops to China," Zernin said.
According to the chairman, grain exports from Russia have amounted to over 60 million tonnes since last July. This exceeds last season's figures by more than 10 million tonnes for cereals, including more than 5 million tonnes for wheat.
Exports of feed crops, barley and maize, added another five million tonnes, which he said was the real breakthrough of the current 2023/24 agricultural season.
"We are diversifying not only our markets but also the range of agricultural products we supply, showing the world market that Russia is not only a world leader in wheat exports but also a reliable supplier of other grain and leguminous crops," the chairman underlined.
According to data released by the International Grains Council last week, Russia’s wheat exports for the 2023-2024 season may reach 53.1 million tonnes, which accounts for a quarter of global wheat sales in 2023-2024.
Under the Russian initiative, which ended in February, Mali, Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, Eritrea, Somalia and Zimbabwe received 200,000 tonnes of grain-free humanitarian grain.