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Russia's agricultural sector mostly untouched by floods, minister states

The work of Russian farming business has not been considerably interrupted by heavy flooding in several areas, Farming Minister Dmitry Patrushev stated on Tuesday, relieving fears about possible crop damage.

The location of spring sowing is approaching 5 million hectares, a slightly higher pace than last year, the minister added.

Russia anticipates to record its second biggest harvest in 2024, after a record 147 million metric tons of grain in 2023.

The location for this year's harvest will increase by 300,000 hectares to 84.5 million hectares, Patrushev stated in January. Winter season crops have been sown on 20 million hectares.

Swathes of northern Kazakhstan and Russia's Urals region are dealing with the worst floods in living memory as melt waters have swelled the tributaries of the world's seventh longest river system, forcing more than 125,000 people to flee their homes.

The agriculture ministry said emergency routines have actually been stated in the Orenburg, Altai, Kurgan and Tyumen regions. The Volga river's Samara area is also at risk of wide-scale floods, it said.

According to industry professionals, the real damage can only be examined when the waters have gone away.

(source: Reuters)