Russian agricultural authorities make a proposal to Kazakhstan and Ukraine to coordinate policies in what concerns expansion to the world market of grain, Agriculture Minister Yelena Skrynnik said here Sunday as she addressed a business forum on the place and role of the Black Sea area in ensuring stability of the world market, ITAR-TASS reported.
Exports of grain from Russia are expected to reach 40 million tons to 50 million tons a year in the next ten to fifteen years and this country's market share will thus grow to 20%, Srkynnik surmised.
She said at the same time that the share of wheat exports from leading CIS countries may come to 30% to 35% in the future.
"Considering this, I propose Kazakhstan and Ukraine to conduct coordinated policies in terms of expansion on the world market," Skrynnik said.
The setting up of a pool of exporters like this one will help scale down the volatility of prices on the international market of grain and their dependence on speculative factors, as well as create a mechanism of inter-state management of grain resources.
"This precedent may mark the first step towards forming the global fund of grain and lay the contours of a system of general food reserves management," Skrynnik said.
The setting up of the 'grain pool' will also help an optimization of investment in a grain production system oriented at grain supplies to the market of the countries involved and at exports.
"This is an especially topical issue today in the wake of the global financial crisis," Skrynnik said.
"There's no time for procrastination as the positions gained by our countries in recent years should be propped up by tangible investment in infrastructure and a reliable foundation for a short-term competitiveness of grain exported from the Black Sea area should be laid," she said.