By Gleb Bryanski and Olga Popova
MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia’s non-genetically modified soybean exports to China are safe, a Russian government source told Reuters on Saturday, despite a deal between China and the United States concluded by U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Russia ranked a distant fifth among the largest soybean exporters to China in 2024, but its shipments consist exclusively of non-genetically modified soybeans, used in the production of foods such as tofu, soy milk, and soy sauce.
Russian Agriculture Minister Oksana Lut visited China this week for talks with her counterpart Han Jun in Beijing, aiming to expand exports just as China committed to purchasing 12 million tons of American soybeans during the current season.
The United States primarily supplies genetically modified soybeans to China, which are used for animal feed. The IKAR consultancy estimates Russia’s exports to China at up to 0.8 million tons of non-GMO soybeans this season.
“I think there is no threat to our non-GMO soybean exports. We are the only ones in the world growing it,” said the source, who declined to be identified.
Russia expects a record soybean harvest of up to 9 million metric tons this year and will have a surplus available for export, said Dmitry Rylko of IKAR. He estimated total exports at up to one million tons.
Russia banned GMO farming in 2016 in a bid to capture a share of the growing global non-GMO food market, which Fortune Business Insights projects will reach $2 trillion by 2032, up from $895 billion in 2025.
Following her meeting, Lut said Russian agricultural exports to China rose by 10% in January–September, driven by sunflower and rapeseed oils, crustaceans, frozen fish, and meat.
Russia is seeking China’s approval to allow access for its winter wheat, its main agricultural export commodity, to the Chinese market, but years of negotiations have yielded no progress.
“Our products meet the strictest standards of food quality and safety. I am confident they will help diversify China’s food market and meet growing consumer demand,” Lut said.
(Writing by Gleb Bryanski; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)
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