Mongolia and Russia to boost agricultural cooperation in four main areas

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ The Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry of Mongolia has finalized a deal with the Russian side on cooperation in four main areas, including improvement of livestock health, export of animal origin products, establishing crop farm and trans-boundary trades. Minister of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry P.Sergelen paid an official visit to the Russian Federation on November 18-20. He met the Russian Minister of Agriculture A.N.Tkachev and the First Deputy Minister of Agriculture E.V.Gromyko, Chairman of the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance S.A.Dankvert and Director of International Department of Cooperation O.V.Garshina. The sides have reached certain agreements on resuming the joint program on improving health of Mongolian livestock, broadening the scope of Mongolia-Russia trade in agricultural products, increasing meat exports to Russia and implementing joint program on obtaining variety of crop sorts, as well as on export quotas for animal-origin goods to enter Russian territory. The commencement of the second stage of the livestock health program has been negotiated during the 20th meeting of Mongolia-Russia Intergovernmental Commission held in Ulaanbaatar. Both sides pledged to promote companies and projects, which will contribute to boosting agricultural ties of the two countries. The Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, Mr Aleksandr N.Tkachev has officially notified of the ministry’s interest to cooperate with the Mongolian side on protecting and preventing contagious livestock diseases in frames of the implementation of program on improving livestock health, through an official letter addressed to the Minister of Food, Agriculture and Light Indsusry, Mr P.Sergelen. The official letter further said that the Russian Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance will send a preliminary report on results of an inspection, carried out on September 17-28 of 2016 at meat processing factories of Mongolia, by the end of December; and that the Russian side will assist Mongolia by studying feasibilities of increasing the amount of meat export to Russia, after considering the results of the above mentioned inspection and some required demand research on Russian market. The Mongolian side is receiving from Russia 5 million doses of vaccine by December 25 out of the agreed total of 20 million doses within the scope of the Program on Improvement of Livestock Health.