Русский
Agricultural trade between Russia and China jumped 34.4% in the first seven months of the year, according to Russian Agriculture Minister Oksana Lut. She was speaking at the Sprouts: Russia and China international forum in Kazan.
Lut noted that trade turnover rose 21% year-on-year to reach approximately US$11 million in 2025. “Both imports and exports have been growing on both sides. We are currently developing cooperation with the vast majority of China’s provinces. Shandong Province is the leader on the Chinese side, with trade turnover totaling US$2.2 billion last year and US$1.4 billion in the first half of this year. The Far East, and the Primorsk and Kamchatka territories hold the leading positions on the Russian side primarily owing to geography. Moscow and the Moscow Region, as well as St. Petersburg, are also doing well.”
Agricultural trade turnover between the Primorsk Territory and China totaled US$1.1 billion in the first half of the year, according to Lut.
Lut also mentioned that Russia and China are developing cooperation in agricultural science across various sectors, particularly in crop production to establish a center to research soybeans. She said that “We are currently discussing and already have specific projects that we are implementing in four main areas. The first is crop production, which is the foundation for agriculture, and the breeding and genetics of key crops. We are currently discussing and reaching certain agreements on establishing a soybean research center.”
Lut said that the crop is important for both China and Russia. “It is clear that China has a huge need for the crop. Russian climate conditions do not allow for the desired volumes of soybean cultivation. Nevertheless, we believe that joint activities and joint research should increase soybean production in Russia and boost productivity and yields in China.”
Data from the Russian Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) indicates that Russia harvested a record soybean crop of 9 million tonnes in 2025 versus 7.1 million tonnes in 2024. China is the world’s largest importer of soybeans, buying over 100 million metric tons annually to feed its massive livestock industry. Beijing has committed to purchasing at least 25 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans per year through 2028, although Brazil remains its largest overall supplier. China is continuing to seek ways to boost domestic yields and partners with alternative suppliers like Russia to offset import reliance.
