Krasnodar Grains Were Left Undamaged by Flooding, Ministry Says

The grain crop in the southern Russian region of Krasnodar, the country’s main cereal-growing area, was unharmed by a deadly weekend flood, according to the local agriculture ministry.

Damage occurred across less than 2 percent of the area sown with grains and other crops in the flooded zone, spokeswoman Yekaterina Melnik said by phone from Krasnodar today. In statistical terms, that means the local crop was left intact, she said.

The region reaped 11.4 million metric tons of grains last year, or 12 percent of the national harvest, state figures show. The death toll from the flooding reached 172 as of yesterday, according to the local government, and 30,000 people were affected by the disaster.

Farmers in Krasnodar harvested 2.9 million tons of grains from 61 percent of the sown area as of yesterday, the ministry said in a statement on its website. Yields averaged 4.2 tons a hectare (2.47 acres), it said. That compares with about 5.4 tons last year, figures from the national Agriculture Ministry show.

To contact the reporter on this story: Marina Sysoyeva in Moscow at msysoyeva@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Carpenter at ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net