Promising Directions for the Use of Land Resources of Russia in Agricultural Production

Abstract

In Russia, there is a significant problem of abandoned agricultural land—a quarter of old arable land is not used. If compared to 1990, the area of fodder land, together with an almost twofold reduction in the number of cattle, has underwent the most significant reduction. The authors of the paper raise the question of the causes of this phenomenon, discuss the possibilities of returning lands to circulation, and define the priority areas for using these lands. This negative process is most evident in those areas with adverse agro-climatic conditions. In the south of the country, in the Central Black Earth Zone, there was no noticeable decline in production. In contrast, there is a stable growth in the agro-industrial sector nowdats. Considering the issue of demand for agricultural products (one of the primary sources of demand for agricultural land), we can establish that the population’s need for crop production is satisfied. The expansion of sown areas makes sense only for the production of a fodder base for the development of meat and dairy farming, where Russia has not yet provided the level of production necessary to fully meet the needs of the population. From the point of view of supply and demand on the land directly, there are also several problems impeding the involvement of land in circulation. The lack of a developed civilized land market and the predominance of shared ownership of land artificially reduce the supply of land. The solution of the described problems, taking into account the significant land potential of Russia, will make it possible to adequately fill the demand for meat and dairy cattle breeding to ensure the growth of the exports of crop production and the development of the agricultural sector as a whole.