ISSN 0798 1015

Vol. 38 (Nº 33) Año 2017. Pág. 40

Organic Production at Long-fallow Lands as a Strategic Resource of the Food Import Substitution Policy

Producción orgánica en tierras de barbecho como recurso estratégico de la política de sustitución de importaciones de alimentos

Irina Nikolaevna SYCHEVA 1; Yakov Lavrentyevich OVCHINNIKOV 2; Elena Sergeyevna PERMYAKOVA 3; Olga Yurievna VORONKOVA 4

Received: 11/06/2017 • Approved: 25/06/2017

Content

1. Introduction

2. Research Methods

3. Research Results

4. Discussion of Research Results

5. Conclusion

References

1. Introduction

Nowadays the market of organic products is one of the most developing and promising areas of the global agro-industrial production (Dzhabarova Y., 2011; Fridlova M., Vostra H., 2011; Grzelak P., Maciejczak M., 2013; Gubbuk H., Polat E., Pekmezci M., 2004; Smoluk-Sikorska J., Luczka-Bakula W., 2013; Altukhov A.I., 2015; Poltaryhin A.L., Tarasova A.Yu., 2013). To a great degree, food safety, the population’s health state and life quality are stipulated by the development of organic agricultural production based on innovational designing in alternative land use, preserving natural resources and, above all, land (Sokolova Zh. E., Avarskiy N.D. et al., 2014; Voronkova, O.Yu., 2014; Zhurchenko A.A., 2012; Tatarkin A.I., Polbitsyn S.N., 2015; Sycheva I.N., Permiakova E.S.,OvchinnikovYa.L., 2015, 2016). Along with this, the unfilled niche of the organic (ecologically friendly) products market and considerable land potential for developing organic land farming create all required pre-requisites for forming and developing the national agriculture focused on organic production.

Russia has everything required for forming agriculture focused on organic production: many years’ agrarian traditions, large agricultural areas and a low level of intensification and chemicalization of the agro-industrial complex as compared to industrially developed countries (Krylatyh E.N., 2008; Lysenko E.G., 2008; Stukach V.F., 2011). Thus, on average in countries of the Eurozone the use of mineral fertilizers is 192 kg/ha, while in Russia it is – 39 kg/ha, and in the Altai Territory – 3.8 kg/ha (Zhidkih A.A., Voronkova O.Yu., Elchishev E.A., 2015).

Due to it, it is actual to develop issues related to perspectives of developing agriculture focused on organic production and stipulating the reasonability to involve long-fallow and idle agricultural land resources in the production turnover for these purposes.

2. Research Methods

Theoretical and methodological basis includes works of national and foreign researchers on issues related to organic agricultural production, developing land relations; scientific researches and recommendations of the Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, laws of the Russian Federation, orders of the President and Decrees of the Government of the Russian Federation, statutory and regulatory acts of subjects of the Federation, decrees of the European Union on developing ecologic agriculture, and IFOAM standards. The methodological basis was the system approach that made it possible to provide the complexity and purposefulness of the research results. The work also used analytical, abstract and logical, calculation and constructive, economic and statistical, economic and mathematic, and monographic methods of the research.

3. Research Results

3.1 Pre-requisites of developing agriculture focused on organic production

It is possible to define the essence of the category “organic agriculture” as a notion that covers all systems of farming based on natural means and resources that take into account natural needs of the flora and fauna, surrounding natural environment whose basic goal is the process of ecologic (organic) production certified by international and national ecological certificates.

In this context, it is necessary to clarify the notion “agriculture focused on organic production” considered as simultaneous traditional industrial and organic agricultural production with a gradual increase in the share of organic agricultural production on the basis of rational, territorially adapted land use with the minimally stipulated chemicalization of agro-technical and technological processes of agricultural production. In accordance with the offered definition, the agricultural establishment that carries out such production will be considered as focused on organic (ecological) production (Voronkova O.Yu., Kundius V.A., Mikhaylushin P.V., 2015).

The carried out estimation of the traditional system of farming showed that even applying the latest achievements of agricultural science and practice, agrarians could not essentially solve the problem related to improving the efficiency of the sector production. Thus, it is necessary to develop the mechanism taking into account the impact of economic, innovational, social, ecological, recreational, national and cultural and other factors, including the one implemented by creating zonal agricultural clusters (Ovchinikov Ya.L., Sycheva I.N., Permiakova E.S., 2016; Sycheva I.N., Permiakova E.S., 2014). To our mind, the formation and development of agriculture focused on organic production must comply with the following system imperatives:

- Development of the concept related to developing organic agricultural production,

- Simultaneous organic and industrial agricultural production,

- Mechanism of transferring agriculture to organic production,

- Forming zonal agricultural clusters, and

- State regulation of agriculture focused on organic production by target development programs.

3.2 Concept of organic agricultural production

During scientific researches, we developed a concept and defined basic areas of forming and implementing the concept of agriculture focused on organic production on the level of the subject of the Russian Federation (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Scheme of Forming and Implementing the Concept of Agrarian
Policy on the Level of the Russian Subject Focused on Organic Production

Forming a system of organic agriculture does not mean refusal from industrial agricultural production. To our mind, both organic and industrial systems of farming can efficiently function simultaneously, gradually transforming into such agrarian technology that can meet current and assumed needs of the population in high quality and ecologically safe food.

In order to stipulate areas of developing organic agricultural production, it is reasonable to reveal factors that contribute to developing the market of organic food on the following levels: state, regional, and level of the agricultural producer (Table 1).

Table 1. Organizational Levels and Determining Factors of
Developing Agriculture Focused on Organic Production

In the modern context of developing the Russian agro-industrial complex, it is possible to single out a number of reasons that slow down the development of agriculture focused on organic production: the lack of interest in principles of organic production by heads of agricultural establishments which is often stipulated by their conservatism to novelties and lack of the required information; difficulties in investing projects in the agro-industrial complex focused on organic production; the lack of the market to sell organic products; the deficit of qualified specialists in the area of organic land use and certification of organic products.

 For the national economy where about 27% of the population live in the rural area and above 12% of the employable population are involved in agricultural production, the formation and development of agriculture focused on organic production will allow to solve not only problems related to ecological safety of food and natural environment, but also social problems of rural territories by improving the level of rural population’s employment.

The agriculture plays an important role in forming the territory economy and lifestyle of the population. Its share is above 18% of the gross regional product against 6-7% in Russia. About 45% of the territory population lives in the rural area. The Altai Territory has a large agricultural potential and holds the first position in Russia according to the cropland area (6.5 mln. ha). Above 75% of the latter is chernozemic soil. According to the volume of production of gross agricultural products, the Territory tops among regions of the Siberian Federal District and is found in the top ten of Russian regions. Its share is about 4% of the Russian production of cereal crops, 3% – sunflower seeds, 15% – linen flax, 5% – milk, 3% – potatoes, about 3% – meat and eggs, about 2% of sugarbeet and vegetables.

The Altai Territory makes a considerable contribution to solving the problem of food safety of the country. 85% of the produced grain, about 70% of flour and fat cheese, 60% of alimentary products, and above 30% of dairy and meat products are imported beyond the region. The Altai Territory has all required resources to transfer to using the principles of organic agricultural production (Zhidkih A.A., Voronkova O.Yu., Elchishchev E.A., 2015; Voronkova O.Yu., Kundius V.A., Mikhaylushkin P.V., 2014).

Taking into consideration the resource-saving orientation of agriculture focused on organic production, the system of managing land use will act as a sub-system of the general production system of managing an agricultural establishment. The main goal of this sub-system is to harmonize aims and tasks of organic agricultural production with the financial result of the establishment activity, i.e. rationally used resources must give the maximum profit.

The transfer to organic agricultural production must comply with the goals and strategy of developing every separate agricultural producer. We offer to consider the formation of the methodic basis of agriculture focused on organic production based on the system approach as an interrelation of inter-stipulated ecologic and economic processes in terms of providing the efficiency of agricultural production by improving the ecological quality of croplands and produced goods.

3.3 Implementing regional target programs related to developing organic agricultural production

The development of state programs related to supporting agricultural establishments focused on organic production plays an important role in the efficiency of organic agricultural production (Sycheva I.N., Permyakova E.S., Kuzmina N.N., 2016; Sycheva I.N., Permyakova E.S., 2015, 2016). The implementation of regional target programs allows to improve the production efficiency in separate target segments due to the targeted support of subsidies receivers and constant control over rational and target use of the provided budgetary finds by the authorized bodies. We offered a mechanism of forming and implementing regional target programs of developing the agro-industrial complex (Figure 2).

Based on the conducted research, a project of the Territory target program “Involving Agricultural Crop and Long-fallow Lands that Are Not Used for Purpose in the Altai Territory in Agricultural Production for Organic Production for the Period of 2017-2022” was developed. It aims at more complete and efficient use of crop lands by agricultural producers, increase in the efficiency of their economic activity, as well as the growth of organic agricultural production in the Altai Territory (Sycheva I.N., Svistula I.N. et al., 2015; Sycheva I.N., 2014; Sycheva I.N., Permyakova E.S., Ovchinnikov Ya.L., 2015).

Figure 2. Mechanism of Developing and Implementing Regional target Programs of Developing Agro-industrial Complex

The expected results of the Program measures include the following:

1) Increase in the share of the purposefully used croplands by 2022 up to 100% as to 2015,

2) Involvement of idle crop lands with the area of 207 thous. ha and long-fallow lands with the area of 110 thous. ha in organic agricultural production,

3) Creation of an efficient mechanism of involving idle crop lands in agricultural production,

4) Reproduction of soil fertility of the cultivated area, and

5) Annual planning of production use of crop lands (Table 2).

Table 2. Project of Efficiency of Measures Taken within the Project of the Program
“Involving Agricultural Crop and Long-fallow Lands that Are Not Used
for Purpose in the Altai Territory in Agricultural Production for Organic
Production for the Period of 2017-2022”

The standard applied for calculating the limited volume of subsidies, which is RUB 2,000 per 1 ha of the idle crop land involved in the agricultural production turnover, was offered. This indicator is based on the cost of 60 liters of diesel fuel required for taking necessary soil processing measures on involving the reserve lands suitable for organic production in the production agricultural turnover.

The following volumes of budgetary subsidies for involving reserve lands suitable for organic production in agricultural production in the Altai Territory are assumed: 2017 – RUB 26 mln., 2018 – RUB 295, 2019 – RUB 258 mln., 2020 – RUB 195 mln., 2021 – RUB 184 mln., 2022 – RUB 102 mln.

In order to estimate the efficiency of production use of reserve lands suitable for organic production involved in agricultural turnover, bodies of municipal establishments of the Altai Territory are recommended to swiftly monitor the state of land resources involved in the turnover to take decisions about terminating further subsidizing of the agricultural producer when negative factors of land use are revealed: decrease in the soil fertility, worsening of the qualitative state of the crop land area, as well as if the yield of the cultivated agricultural crops is considerably lower than the average one in this municipal establishment.

The Program measures aim at improving the efficiency of agricultural production and forming pre-requisites for providing food safety both in the Altai Territory and in the Russian Federation as a whole due to increasing the volume of organic agricultural production.

4. Discussion of Research Results

Based on strategic plans of developing the organic agricultural sector of the Altai Territory, as well as the authors’ Territory target program “Involving Agricultural Crop and Long-fallow Lands that Are Not Used for Purpose in the Altai Territory in Agricultural Production for Organic Production for the Period of 2017-2022”, production of the agro-industrial complex of the Altai Territory for the period of 2017-2027 is forecasted (Table 3). 

Table 3. Forecasting Production of the Agro-industrial Complex of the Altai Territory
Taking into Account the Implementation of Offered Recommendations for the
Period of 2017-2027, thous. t.

In the long-term period (2017-2027) it is planned to achieve the following share of organic agricultural production of the total volume of production: cereal crops – up to 10.2%, bast fiber – up to 11.4%, sugar beet – up to 11.5%, sunflower – up to 11.7%, and potato – up to 15.1%. In cattle breeding organic technologies will comprise above 12% of milk production and about 14% of meat production.

It is forecasted to have increased the cost of the agricultural gross production (as compared to 2015 prices) up to RUB 182 bln. by 2027, or 155% as to 2015. It is planned to increase the profitability of agricultural establishments up to 20% as compared to the estimation indicator of 2015 – 8.7% (Table 4).

Table 4. Target Indicators of Developing Agriculture of the Altai Territory Taking
into Account Implementing Recommendations for the Period of 2017-2027

The research defines that Russian regions have all required natural and climate conditions, resourceful and land potential to organize a system of organic agricultural production (along with traditional). The system analysis and estimation of the opportunity to use the global experience of organic agricultural production as combined with the current traditions of the Russian land use are a pre-requisite for strategic development and strengthening positions of agriculture in the system of national economy. It is possible to assume that the agriculture focused on organic production acts as “a new philosophy” in the system of land use.

5. Conclusion

We have offered to interpret the agriculture focused on organic production as farming that simultaneously uses the traditionally existing industrial system of production focused on organic agricultural production and features a gradual increase in the share of organic sector based on rational, territorially adapted land use with the minimally stipulated chemicalization of agro-technical and technological processes of agricultural production. Specified theoretical grounds of agriculture focused on organic production allow to more efficiently resolve the problem related to rational use of the land potential of regions by involving long-fallow and idle tillage defined as the reserve of lands that are suitable for organic production in the production agricultural turnover.

The formation of the organic production system does not mean the refusal from industrial agricultural production. To our mind, both organic and industrial systems of agricultural production can efficiently function simultaneously, gradually transforming into agrarian technology that will meet the current and supposed needs of the population in high quality and ecologically safe food.

The formed concept of the agricultural policy focused on organic production on the level of the subject of the Russian Federation and stipulated mechanism of state management of developing the organic agricultural production define the succession of actions and tools that are used when mutually stipulated organizational and economic, innovational and technological, and management measures are taken to optimally organize agricultural production when agricultural producers move to using organic activity principles.

The stipulated mechanism of developing and implementing regional target programs of developing the agro-industrial complex made it possible to develop the project of the Territory target program “Involving Agricultural Crop and Long-fallow Lands that Are Not Used for Purpose in the Altai Territory in Agricultural Production for Organic Production for the Period of 2017-2022”. It aims at more complete and efficient use of croplands by agricultural producers, increase in the efficiency of their economic activity, as well as the growth of organic agricultural production in the Altai Territory. According to the program, up to 2022, 207 thous. ha of crop lands that are not used for purpose, and 110 thous. ha of long-fallow lands will have been involved in agricultural organic production.

The limited volume of subsidies up to 2022 defined by the authors on the basis of the calculated standard of the idle tillage involved in the agricultural production turnover, being RUB 2,000 per 1 ha. made up RUB 1,060 mln. The developed methodology of monitoring the estimation of using organically applied log-fallow lands for the agricultural production enables municipal establishments of the Altai Territory to efficiently monitor the state of land resources involved in the turnover in order to take decisions about terminating further subsidizing of this agricultural producer if negative factors of land use are revealed, as well as when calculating the rent of agricultural producers for using lands of regional funds of lands re-allocation.

Based on the Program of Developing Agriculture of the Altai Territory, and proceeding from the optimal scientifically stipulated structure of cultivated areas, yield of agricultural crops and productivity of cattle, as well as the plan developed by the authors on involving agricultural crop and long-fallow lands that are not used for purpose in agricultural production turnover for organic production, the production of agro-industrial complex of the Altai Territory was forecasted for the period of 2017-2022, and the share of organic sector was defined. The focus of land, material, financial, labor resources in terms of developing the agriculture focused on organic production not only opens opportunities for increasing the national organic production but also makes it possible to decrease the dependence on import, and will contribute to improving the quality and ecological safety of products, developing diversification of agriculture and associated areas of the agro-industrial complex.

References

Altukhov, A.I., 2015. Zarubezhnye sanktsii kak faktor uskorennogo importozamescheniya produktsii na agroprodovolstvennom rynke strany [Foreign Sanctions as a Factor of Accelerated Import Substitution of Products on Agro-food Market of the Country]. Bread Products, 3: 10-14.

Dzhabarova, Y., 2011. The Level of Awareness - a Driving Factor in the Consumer Behavior on the Bulgarian Organic Market. Agricultural Science, 7 (3): 101-105.

Frydlova, M. and H. Vostra, 2011. Determinants Influencing Consumer Behavior in Organic Food Market. Acta University Agricultural Silvicultural Mendelianae Brunensis, 59 (7): 111-119.

Grzelak, P. and M. Maciejczak, 2013. Comparison Between the United States and Poland of Consumers' Perceptions of Organic Products. Studies in Agricultural Economics, 115 (1): 47-56.

Gubbuk, H., E. Polat and M. Pekmezci, 2004. Organic Fruit Production in Turkey. Journal of Fruit Ornamental Plant Res, 12: 23-29.

Krylatyh, E.N., 2008. Vzaimosvyaz energoekologicheskogo i agroprodovolstvennogo krizisov: sostoyanie. puti preodoleniya [Interrelation of Power and Agro-food Crises: State and Ways to Overcome]. Agrarian Bulletin of Ural, 8: 7-10.

Lysenko, E.G., 2008. Ekologo-ekonomicheskie problemy zemledeliya [Ecological and Economic Problems of Farming]. Economy of Russian Agriculture, 2: 68-73.

Poltaryhin, A.L. and A.Yu. Tarasova, 2013. “Zelenaya” ekonomika: perspektivy razvitiya [“Green” Economy: Perspectives of Development]. Bulletin of the Altai Science, 2-2: 183-186.

Smoluk-Sikorska, J. and W. Luczka-Bakula, 2013. Sale of Organic Food in Specialist and General Retail Grocery Outlets - a Comparative Analysis. Acta Scientiarum Polonorum: Oeconomia, 12 (1): 35-44.

Sokolova, Zh.E., N.D. Avarskiy, V.V. Taran and V.G. Stefanovskiy, 2014. Rynok organicheskoy produktsii Rossii: sovremennoe sostoyanie i potentsial razvitiya [Russian Market of Organic Products: Modern State and Development Potential]. Economy of Russian Agriculture, 5: 29-37.

Stukach, V.F., 2011. Formirovanie institutov regionalnogo agroprodovolstvennogo rynka [Forming Institutes of Regional Agro-food Market]. Success of Modern Natural Science, 2: 138-142.

Sycheva, I.N. and E.S. Permyakova, 2016. Kontseptsii regionalnogo razvitiya v kontekste globalizatsii [Concepts of Regional Development in the Context of Globalization]. Economy and Business: Theory and Practice, 1: 170-174.

Sycheva, I.N., E.S. Permyakova and N.N. Kuzmina, 2016. "Green Box" and Innovative Development of the Regional Agricultural Sector. Biosciences Biotechnology Research Asia, 12 (1): 181-190.

Sycheva, I.N. and E.S. Permyakova, 2014. Problemy innovatsionnogo razvitiya APK regiona [Problems of Innovational Development of the Agro-industrial Complex of the Region]. Economy and Society, 4-4 (13): 1175-1188.

Sycheva, I.N. and E.S. Permyakova, 2015. Novaya paradigma sotsialno-ekonomicheskogo razvitiya i modernizatsiya regionov Rossii [New Paradigm of the Social and Economic Development and Modernization of Russian Regions]. Moscow: Nauchnoe Obozrenie Publishing House, pp: 125.

Sycheva, I.N., I.A. Svistula and N.V. Belaya, 2015. Model integrirovannogo razvitiya APK regiona [Model of Integrated Development of the Agro-industrial Complex of the Region]. Barnaul: Publishing House of the AltSTU, pp: 246.

Sycheva, I.N. 2014. Green Box and Innovative Development of Agriculture in the Altai Territory of Russia. Journal of Advanced Research in Law and Economics, V1-3 (13): 6-12.

Sycheva, I.N., E.S. Permyakova and Ya.L. Ovchinnikov, 2015. Perspektivy razvitiya zelenoy ekonomiki v Rossii [Perspectives of Developing Green Economy in Russia]. In the Proceedings of the International Conference. October 22-24. 2015. Barnaul: Publishing House of AltSTU, pp: 199.

Tatarkin, A.I. and S.N. Polbitsyn, 2015. Regionalniy vektor prodovolstvennoy bezopasnosti Rossii [Regional Vector of Russian Food Safety]. Agro-industrial Complex: Economy. Management, 12: 3-9.

Voronkova, O.Yu., 2014. Neispolzuemaya pashnya – vazhniy resurs proizvodstva organicheskogo prodovolstviya [Unused Tillage – an Important Resource of Producing Organic Food]. Agro-industrial Complex: Economy. Management, 10: 51-59.

Voronkova, O.Yu., V.A. Kundius and P.V. Mihaylushkin, 2015. Strategicheskie prioritety razvitiya regionalnyh agroprodovolstvennyh system, orientirovannyh na proizvodstvo organicheskoy produktsii.[Strategic priorities for the development of regional agro-food systems, oriented to the production of organic products] Krasnodar: Prosveschenie-Yug, pp: 194.

Zhidkih, A.A., O.Yu. Voronkova and E.A. Elchischev, 2015. Rayonirovanie – kak instrument vovlecheniya v selskohozyaystvenniy oborot neispolzuemyh pahotnyh i zalezhyh zemel (klasternaya model) [Region – as a Tool to Involve Unused Tillage and Laylandin Agricultural Turnover (Cluster Model)]. Barnaul: Azbuka, pp: 123.

Zhuchenko, A.A., 2012. Vyzovy XXI stoletiya mirovoy i otechestvennoy prodovolstvennoy bezopasnosti [Challenges of the XXI Century of the Global and National Food Safety]. Russian Agro-food Policy, 1: 6-8.

1. I.I. Polzunov Altai State Technical University, 656038, Russian Federation, Altai Region, Barnaul, Lenin Av., 46

2. Altai State University, 656049, Russian Federation, Russian Federation, Altai Region, Barnaul, Lenin Av., 61