The loans are aimed at creating the infrastructure, the construction of the plant and the purchase of equipment, machinery and transport. The complex is being built in the Rostov region by Donstar, part of Russia’s largest producer of turkey meat, Eurodon.
Donstar general director Vadim Vannev said: “The new complex will be large, not only for Russia but also by European standards. Its annual production capacity will amount to 20,000 tonnes (t) of duck meat per year.
“The complex is designed to comply with the strictest sanitary standards and safety regulations. Russian companies are now subject to more severe conditions than all other Western market producers, which do not have such strict legislative requirements and tough regulations for the sanitary and epidemiological safety of established businesses.”
The project involves the construction of an incubator, 64 poultry houses, poultry plants, a feed plant with a 20,000t grain storage, a litter plant, litter processing plants and other industrial facilities, which will together compose a single agricultural cluster. The business will have closed-cycle technology and will be fully automated, from the production of eggs for breeding ducks through to meat processing and distribution of the finished products. Construction began in May 2011.
Important investment
Officials have highlighted the importance of the project, primarily because it increases the competitiveness of the whole poultry industry in the country. According to Global Reach Consulting, goose and duck meat production in Russia currently accounts for only a 1-2% share of total poultry production.
Rosselhozbank chairman Dmitry Patrushev said: “The domestic poultry industry can be developed further through the construction of modern high-tech businesses and by diversifying production. Rosselhozbank supports similar projects across the country. The new complex will increase the competitiveness of the whole industry.”
A Ministry of Agriculture representative from Rostov said the project was also very important for the Rostov region. He said: “The Rostov region is now the undisputed leader in the CIS for the production of turkeys and is one of the leaders in raising pigs and chickens. This new project will allow it to reach a leading position on duck production in the country, which is still rare.”
The state-owned Russian Agricultural Bank (Rosselkhozbank) has allocated RUB600m (US$20m) to finance the construction of a duck meat-producing poultry complex, which is expected to become operational in 2013. The construction is just one of three projects in the poultry industry being supported by the government, which comes to a total of RUB5bn (US$170m).
