Business news

9 Nov 2021

Subbotin: Belarus is self-reliant in food, exports more

MINSK, 9 November (BelTA) - Belarus is self-sufficient in food. Moreover, the country has been increasing food exports, Belarusian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Subbotin told the media on the sidelines of the international exhibition Prodexpo 2021, BelTA has learned.

"We can meet our own needs in food by 100%. Moreover, we seek to export all the surpluses. Amid the turbulence in foreign markets, the demand for food has been increasing, prices have been going up. In January-September Belarus’ food export rose by 12.6% year-on-year to total $4.7 billion,” Aleksandr Subbotin said.

According to him, Belarus’ food export goes to various markets, including to the countries of the European Union and Africa. "We aim for about $6 billion in food export. I hope we will reach this figure by the end of the year," the deputy prime minister added.

Aleksandr Subbotin also touched upon the topic of food prices. "Indeed, food prices have been rising worldwide. We are monitoring the situation in the domestic market so that price changes are reasonable. We try to ensure that retail chains do not increase prices for the sake of raking in higher margins. The main goal is to shield people from the market turbulence," he stressed.