Russia's Rostov Region declares emergency over Black Sea grain export halt

The governor of Russia's Rostov region, Yuri Slyusar, has introduced a regional state of emergency triggered by a critical buildup of grain in local elevators that cannot be shipped out through Black Sea ports. The news was reported by Russian outlet The Insider, citing "Ekspert Yug" and The Moscow Times.

The emergency regime took effect at 18:00 on August 28. According to the governor's order, the situation is recognized as an emergency dating back to July 10, caused by the halt of port operations and disruption of maritime shipping in the Azov-Black Sea basin. Slyusar instructed the regional Ministry of Agriculture to monitor and forecast developments and to keep farmers informed about the scale of the emergency and the measures being taken by authorities.

Exports at 16-year low

Arkady Zlochevsky, head of the Russian Grain Union, said the economic situation for Russian farmers looks very bad, noting that shipments in the Azov basin have completely stopped. In August, the largest Black Sea grain terminals also halted operations after being hit by drone strikes, following the earlier shutdown of Azov ports. As a result, more than 80% of Russia's grain export capacity has been paralyzed.

According to estimates from Russian agricultural analytics center Sovecon, wheat exports in August fell to their lowest level in 16 years, at 1.9 million tonnes. Russia's Ministry of Agriculture is reportedly preparing to launch state grain purchases and is exploring alternative export routes, including via ports on the Arctic Ocean.

Earlier, on August 27, it emerged that the world's largest container carrier, MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co., had suspended new bookings for shipments through Russia's Novorossiysk port. Latvia's Foreign Minister Baiba Braže had previously said Russian strikes on Ukraine's grain infrastructure were aimed at starving the world.