{"id":153257,"date":"2025-06-02T22:54:16","date_gmt":"2025-06-02T22:54:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/153257\/"},"modified":"2025-06-02T22:54:16","modified_gmt":"2025-06-02T22:54:16","slug":"potato-prices-in-russia-have-nearly-tripled-heres-whats-driving-the-spud-crisis-and-whether-relief-is-on-the-way-meduza","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/153257\/","title":{"rendered":"Potato prices in Russia have nearly tripled Here\u2019s what\u2019s driving the spud crisis \u2014 and whether relief is on the way \u2014 Meduza"},"content":{"rendered":"

Potato prices are soaring in Russia. The vegetable \u2014 consumed in Russia at some of the highest<\/a> rates in the world \u2014 has become<\/a> 2.8 times more expensive over the past year. As of early May 2025, the average retail price for a kilogram (2.2 pounds) of potatoes had reached a historic high of over 85 rubles ($1.07), according to Rosstat, and continues<\/a> to climb. In May 2024, the price was around 30 rubles (38 cents). And that\u2019s just the national average: in some<\/a> regions<\/a>, shoppers have been stunned to see prices as high as 200 rubles ($2.53) per kilogram.<\/p>\n

The crisis has reached the highest levels of government. Even Vladimir Putin has acknowledged<\/a> that the country is facing a potato shortage. Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev, who oversees the agriculture sector, admitted<\/a> that the government was too slow to implement measures to stabilize the food market \u2014 a clear reference to the \u201cpotato crisis.\u201d<\/p>\n

2<\/p>\n

Why are potato prices rising?<\/p>\n

As is often the case with food crises involving specific products, there\u2019s no single cause behind the surge in prices. It\u2019s the result of a chain of interconnected factors, each compounding the next. Still, the main driver of today\u2019s high potato prices is undoubtedly the poor harvest of 2024. That year, Russia\u2019s potato yield dropped<\/a> by nearly 12 percent compared to 2023, totaling 17.8 million tons.<\/p>\n

This decline was driven<\/a> not only by bad weather and a shortage of seed potatoes, but also by a reduction in the area under cultivation. In 2023, Russia saw a record potato harvest, which pushed prices so low that growing the crop became unprofitable. As a result, in 2024, farmers shifted<\/a> land away from potatoes in favor of more lucrative crops like oilseeds, sugar beets, and others.<\/p>\n

Even though we\u2019re outlawed in Russia, we continue to deliver exclusive reporting and analysis from inside the country.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Our journalists on the ground take risks to keep you informed about changes in Russia during its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.\u00a0Support<\/a>\u00a0Meduza\u2019s work today.<\/p>\n

At the same time, the sector came under added pressure from inflation, which drove up the cost of fertilizer, fuel, logistics, and more \u2014 all while the Central Bank\u2019s stood<\/a> at a prohibitive 21 percent. On top of that, much of the harvested crop was poor<\/a> in quality, accelerating spoilage and intensifying competition among retailers for potatoes that were still in acceptable condition.<\/p>\n

In searching for explanations, some experts have even pointed to<\/a> more unexpected factors \u2014 such as changing social habits, including a growing tendency among Russians to give up home gardening.<\/p>\n

3<\/p>\n

How are the government and retailers responding?<\/p>\n

In 2025, Russia\u2019s potato market is being saved, first and foremost, by imports. After years of declining<\/a> volumes, imports have increased<\/a> three and a half times this year. By spring, foreign potatoes accounted<\/a> for 30\u201340 percent of stock in major retail chains \u2014 compared to an average of just 10 percent over the course of the year. Egypt has become the leading supplier, followed by China<\/a>, Pakistan, Turkey, Israel, Belarus (which is experiencing<\/a> its own shortage this year), Azerbaijan, Georgia<\/a>, and even Mongolia<\/a>. With importers now playing such an active role, they\u2019ve largely taken the lead in setting prices on the Russian market, according to<\/a> the Potato Union, a trade association.<\/p>\n

But since imports have yet to bring potato inflation under control, calls are growing for non-market measures. State Duma Deputy Speaker Boris Chernyshov, for example, has proposed<\/a> that the Economic Development Ministry introduce government price regulation for this category. The government does have the authority to cap prices for certain socially significant staple foods for up to 90 days, provided they rise by 10 percent or more over a 60-day stretch, accounting for seasonal factors. So far, though, the Cabinet of Ministers has limited itself to allowing the duty-free import of 150,000 tons of potatoes between the start of the year and the end of July \u2014 with plans<\/a> to raise that limit to 300,000 tons.<\/p>\n

Russia\u2019s Federal Antimonopoly Service, which monitors unfair pricing practices by retailers, has recommended<\/a> that grocery chains relax their requirements for the shape and size of potatoes allowed on shelves, so stores can stock more \u201cunaesthetic\u201d but still edible produce. Some regional governments have gone further, introducing strict measures such as bans<\/a> on transporting potatoes for sale beyond their borders.<\/p>\n

Agriculture Minister Oksana Lut has predicted<\/a> that prices should start to fall in July, once this year\u2019s harvest begins. Until then, she promised<\/a>, both she and Industry and Trade Minister Anton Alikhanov would cut potatoes from their diets \u201cto leave more for the market.\u201d The Agriculture Ministry has also said that in 2025 \u2014 unlike last year \u2014 the area planted with potatoes will grow slightly, by 2.3 percent, or 7,000 hectares. Still, much will depend<\/a> on variables like the weather, making it hard to say whether Lut\u2019s forecast will pan out.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, consumers struggling with high prices can only hunt for deals at discount chains<\/a> \u2014 and hope that the many factors shaping the price of potatoes this season don\u2019t once again throw supply and demand out of balance.<\/p>\n

Behind the ruble\u2019s resilience Propped up by Trump and sky-high interest rates, Russia\u2019s currency is on borrowed time<\/a>Behind the ruble\u2019s resilience Propped up by Trump and sky-high interest rates, Russia\u2019s currency is on borrowed time<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Potato prices are soaring in Russia. The vegetable \u2014 consumed in Russia at some of the highest rates…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":153258,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3090],"tags":[51,1700,16,15,7888,7883,7886,7875,7868,7880,7870,7881,7887,7876,7864,7871,7865,7873,7874,7866,7869,7867,7885,7879,7872,7884,7882,7878,7877],"class_list":{"0":"post-153257","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-economy","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-economy","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-7888","13":"tag-7883","14":"tag-7886","15":"tag-7875","16":"tag-7868","17":"tag-7880","18":"tag-7870","19":"tag-7881","20":"tag-7887","21":"tag-7876","22":"tag-7864","23":"tag-7871","24":"tag-7865","25":"tag-7873","26":"tag-7874","27":"tag-7866","28":"tag-7869","29":"tag-7867","30":"tag-7885","31":"tag-7879","32":"tag-7872","33":"tag-7884","34":"tag-7882","35":"tag-7878","36":"tag-7877"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114616235749912211","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153257","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=153257"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153257\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/153258"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=153257"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=153257"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=153257"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}