Dairy exports growing for Russia

Retaliation from Russia to the European Union and other Western countries, in response to the sanctions which has been suffering because of conflict in Ukraine has opened an opportunity for Brazilian exporters of dairy products. Since July of this year when Russia opened up its market to effectively Brazil dairy, negotiations between the Brazilian and Russian importers to sell cheese and butter are heated and shipments already achieved also advance. And the expectation is that the volumes exported to grow in the coming months.
From January to September, with shipments of both products totaled nearly $ 1 million. Were 182 tonnes of butter and cheese 118. Are still negligible volumes, but the potential for growth, since Russia has few possibilities of suppliers on the market and sales are just starting.
According to Marcelo Costa Martins, Executive Director of Viva, Dairy companies, the expectation is that exports of butter to reach 450 tons this year and the cheeses, 350. "Next year, if all going well, we have room for at least double that amount," he said.
One of the companies that are about to embark for Russia is the Cheese Dairy Tirolez. According to Cicero Hegg, commercial and marketing director of the company, the first shipment of Tirolez to country will be on Monday. Will be 22 tons of gorgonzola cheese. On day 26 of October, there will be other boarding, once again to 22 tonnes of assorted cheeses. "The Russians are big consumers of dairy products and are not self-reliant," Hegg. The expectation, says the businessman, is embarking to Russia of 40 to 50 tons of cheese per month, "at least" in the next 12 months.
Already the Itambé, mining joint venture between Force and Central Cooperative of Farmers of Minas Gerais (CCPR), monthly shipments of an estimated 100 tonnes of butter to Russia. According to Ricardo Cotta, Director of institutional relations of the company, there is demand for larger volumes, but there is no capacity to serve it because there is enough fat to produce more butter. For that, it would be necessary to enlarge the production of skimmed milk, milk fat is the raw material for butter.
Until last year, Brazil could not export to Russia, but the impossibility of buying from several countries because of sanctions led Moscow to revise the rules that guide the import. Before that, Russia only allowed the purchase of dairy products (milk powder, butter, cheese and other) of countries free of brucellosis and tuberculosis in the herd. But it ended the requirement and so it was possible to establish an international health certificate with Brazil, which is not yet free of the two diseases.
The negotiations for the establishment of the international health certificate for the export of dairy products to Russia began in June last year, according to Marcelo Costa Martins, Alive. In a period of three months, the health requirements have been identified for export and there was inspecting units by the Russians. Then, in September of last year, have been enabled 12 units and the first shipments began.
The BRF, which then had not yet transferred his milk to the area for Lactalis, had enabled plant, took advantage of his knowledge of the Russian market-where already exports-meat and sold significant volumes of butter. In the last three months of 2014, when the Russian demand was already strong as sanctions were 838.4 tons. In addition, the BRF was also responsible for the export, in May of 182 tonnes of butter to that country.
In July of this year, 11 other dairy plants of Brazil were entitled to export to Russia. Now there are 23.
The Executive Director of Viva admits that the recent Milk appreciation of the dollar against the real and the improvement of milk prices in the international market also favour the Brazilian shipments to Russia. He evaluates that Brazil could become a more constant supplier to Russia on account of the embargo of the country the other dairy exporters. He claims to be a perception that the Russians are trying to diversify its range of suppliers. "Two to three times a week, we have received queries from Russian importers interested in cheese and butter," she says.
Hegg, Tirolez, believes that strong demand for products from Brazil "will last as long as the embargo" from the West to the country. But the manager says "realistic" and notes that dairy products produced in European countries, closer to Russia, have the most competitive prices.