In 2024, Russia saw a significant rise in imports of feed additives, with dependence on China reaching a critical level. This shift in the market dynamics, as outlined by Lybov Savkina, general director of Moscow-based think tank Feedlot, during the GrainTech conference in Moscow last week, has several implications for the Russian feed industry.
During the first half of the year, Russian imports of key feed vitamins A, C, B2, and B12 rose 20% compared to the previous year, Savkina said. The share of European suppliers shrank to 7% against 15% a year earlier. China increased its dominance in the market, reaching a 93% share, compared to 85% in 2023.
Savkina describes the new level of dependence on China as "critical." Over the past few years, Russian feed industry officials repeatedly warned that fully relying on a single supplier bears certain risks for the market.
To some extent, the growth in imports is secured by the general expansion of the Russian feed industry. In 2024, Russian feed production is expected to climb by 5% to 37 million tonnes, and premix production by 6% to 587,000 tonnes, Savkina said.
Russian imports of lysine HCl amounted to 13,000 tonnes, up 13% compared to the previous year. Russia also saw a 49% rise in imports of threonine and a 70% increase in imports of tryptophan.
Imports of lysine sulfate spiked by 250%, reaching 14,000 tonnes, thanks to a 500% rise in exports from Belarus’ BNBC in H1, Savkina said, adding that BNBC had managed to push Chinese importers out of the market, claiming a 92% share of Russian lysine sulfate imports.
