Belarus may reach an export of 1 million tons of potatoes in the next 5 years

September 7, Pruzhany District / Alina Grishkevich - BELTA/. Belarus may reach an export volume of 1 million tons of potatoes in the next 5 years. This opinion was expressed by the President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko today during a visit to OJSC "Otechestvo" in Pruzhany District, as reported by a BELTA correspondent. As the President was informed, in the next 5 years it is planned to increase the sown areas for potatoes from the current 51 thousand hectares to 65 thousand hectares, as well as to almost double the potato production in the public sector to 2 million tons, of which 500 thousand tons could be exported. However, after talking with the Governor of the Brest Region, the head of state expressed the opinion that producers can export significantly more – up to 1 million tons of potatoes. In order to further develop potato growing, it is proposed to improve the existing seed production system for this crop, and to optimize the number of potato varieties of domestic selection (of different maturity groups and intended uses) in the structure of sown areas to 20 names. As Alexander Lukashenko was informed, the improved seed production system will allow concentrating potato seed production in 16 seed-producing organizations, carrying out full seed certification at all stages, and fully meeting the needs of organizations and the population for high-quality seed potatoes. It is also proposed to continue consolidating potato production organizations with a planting area of at least 300-500 hectares per farm. These large enterprises will need to be equipped with specialized machinery and equipment for cultivation, harvesting, and processing of potatoes, supplemented with a set of modern equipment to ensure the complete technological process of potato cultivation and harvesting, with the installation of sorting and packaging lines. Among the directions that will contribute to the development of potato growing is the construction of new modern potato storage facilities, the reconstruction and modernization of existing ones with a total capacity of about 400 thousand tons. This will ensure the full preservation of potatoes until the most economically advantageous time for their sale, and in turn will allow earning an additional at least Br200 thousand per ton of potatoes stored. Regarding potato processing, it is planned to organize the production of starch in the volume of about 18 thousand tons, and potato products (including the production of import-substituting types of products) in the volume of about 12 thousand tons. For this purpose, organizations in the potato-growing region will need to be reconstructed and technically re-equipped. It will also be necessary to form own raw material zones for growing potatoes for specific purposes to produce specific types of products. All this will allow loading production capacities with quality raw materials, reducing their consumption per unit of product, and consequently, the cost of finished products by 25-30%. For further development of potato growing, it is also proposed to create 14 integration structures for the production, storage, processing, and sale of potatoes and potato products on the basis of large organizations, where the planting area reaches 300-500 hectares each. According to experts, all this will improve the quality of potatoes for food and technical purposes, ensure the production of a wide range of potato products, reduce waste during processing, and also decrease the import of potato products. -0-