Russia starts some food export curbs, weighs further limits

Russia is starting to restrict exports of some goods while easing imports as part of the government’s response to the global coronavirus crisis.

A government coronavirus prevention council ordered exports of groats suspended for 10 days starting on March 20, the state-run Tass news service reported, citing a letter from the agricultural agency Rosselkhoznadzor. Groats typically include rice and buckwheat, a popular side dish in Russia.

Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin earlier ordered officials to report by Wednesday on whether there should be curbs on outbound shipments of food, medicines and other basic consumer goods. The instructions follow a quick succession of other measures in recent days to counter the potential impact of the infection, including a ‘green corridor’ for some imports.

Russia is the world’s top wheat exporter, while its other agricultural sales are primarily sunflower oil and fish. Mishustin said on Thursday that the country has enough food, but the order published Monday said the government should re-assess domestic supplies every week. Wheat prices jumped in Russia and globally in recent days as people stocked up.

“With these rapid price increases, the risks of export restrictions on wheat have seriously increased,” said Andrey Sizov Jr., managing director at consultant SovEcon. “The price increases aren’t over yet.”

Closing the door to some food exports could undo some of the progress made by Russia in reaching new markets, such as China, according to the Association of Producers and Suppliers of Food. Producers are making sure workers stay at home if they feel unwell while many companies run a lower risk of operation stoppages because of a high level of automation, according to Dmitry Vostrikov, development director at the group.

One measure intended to keep Russians well supplied with consumer goods was approved last week. As of Friday, the government eased rules for a month on importing some products and reduced the import tax to zero for medicines.