Since the beginning of the pandemic, the increase in cost of milk production has averaged 27-28% - Sumanta Kumar De

The main influence on the cost of milk production, according to him, is the cost of feed and operating costs.

‘The increase in feed prices is a global trend, it has automatically increased the cost price. In addition to the global increase in prices for agricultural crops, in the last two years there has also been a worldwide increase in prices for fertilizers, veterinary drugs, energy sources, metals and other elements in the cost structure,’ the expert noted.

Sumanta Kumar De also added that Rusmolco is concerned about the explosive growth of energy and gas prices on world markets. He expressed the opinion that in the future this situation may lead to an increase in the cost of metals - the basic component in the production of agricultural machinery, and fertilizers.

‘In this situation, Russia has become a hostage to the processes of rising gas prices taking place in the world. Therefore, the increase in cost is not a consequence of some internal processes in the Russian agricultural sector, which, by the way, on the contrary, demonstrates high productivity growth, it is the impact of global trends on the Russian market,’ Sumanta Kumar De concluded.

Earlier, we reported that an increase in cost of milk production by almost 30% from 2020 due to rising costs, which was not offset by an increase in selling prices, led to a drop in profitability in the industry. The National Union of Milk Producers (Soyuzmoloko) asks the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) to take this factor into account when analyzing prices. The appeal is intended to help prove to regulators the validity of the increase in the cost of dairy products.