Greetings on Agricultural and Food Processing Industry Workers’ Day

Greetings on Agricultural and Food Processing Industry Workers’ Day

Vladimir Putin congratulated the workers of the agro-industrial complex on their professional holiday, Agriculture and Processing Industry Workers’ Day. President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Friends, I am pleased to congratulate everyone working in agriculture and the food processing industry, as well as retired workers, on their professional holiday. We mark this holiday in the autumn, as the harvest season draws to a close. I would like to express particular gratitude to agricultural workers who have laboured tirelessly, often without a break, to bring in the harvest. As I have said before and will say again, you are rightly and affectionately known as the breadwinners of Russia. This is a title you should be proud of. My heartfelt thanks go to everyone working in agriculture and at food processing enterprises. Thanks to your energy and dedication, Russia continues to rank among the world’s leading agricultural producers. Despite the challenging circumstances we face today, Russia’s agro-industrial sector continues to operate steadily and reliably. You carry out your duties honestly and with complete dedication, reliably guaranteeing the country’s food security. This year, we will once again achieve a good grain harvest, comfortably exceeding the 100-million-tonne mark. Production of meat, milk, eggs and many other agricultural products has remained at a good level as well. Recently, large agricultural businesses – medium-sized companies and farms in particular – have faced a number of challenges caused by sanctions, infrastructure and export barriers, as well as rising costs. The state will certainly continue to provide the necessary assistance to agricultural producers, helping them address fuel, transport and marketing issues, and ensure access to seeds and planting material. We will continue to provide systematic support for the agro-industrial sector as a whole, given the ambitious objectives it faces. One of our key priorities is to strengthen the technological capabilities of the agro-industrial sector across the board, from breeding, genetics, seed production and biotechnology to the adoption of modern agricultural machinery, equipment and digital solutions. Making agriculture more technologically advanced is essential to ensuring the sector’s efficiency and competitiveness for years to come. These efforts must, of course, be underpinned by proper training of skilled professionals and talented young people who see opportunities for personal fulfilment in this sector and are ready to live and work in rural areas and raise large, close-knit families. That is why we will continue to pay special attention to improving living conditions in villages, small towns, and rural communities. This means providing comfortable housing and access to education and healthcare, as well as modernising existing rural community centres and building new ones, alongside libraries and sports facilities. I am confident that, by working together, we will successfully implement all our plans and ensure the sector’s continued high-quality growth. Once again, I congratulate everyone working in Russia’s agro-industrial sector. I wish you and your loved ones every success, good health and prosperity.