Russia’s farming industry has been hit by one of the severest heat waves of the century after enduring a bitter winter that destroyed winter crops.

The central Volga region of Tatarstan, 800 kilometers east of Moscow, has not seen rain fall since April. The region is one of Russia’s leading agricultural regions. Temperatures have soared above the usual levels, reaching above 30 degrees Celsius in the past few weeks.

23 of Russia’s 83 regions have declared a state of emergency over the drought. The Volga, Urals and the southwest regions are among the worst hit areas.

The Ministry of Agriculture reported that 10 million hectares of land have been destroyed by the drought. This is equivalent to approximately 20 per cent of Russia’s arable land. Russia is likely to harvest only 80 million tonnes of grain this year, compared to 97 million in 2009.

The prolonged drought augurs bad news for grain consumers worldwide and is hurting Russia’s ambitions to emerge as the leading international grain exporter by doubling grain exports to 40-50 million tonnes a year.

Annual domestic consumption is around 77 million tonnes hence the volume of grain exports has to be lowered in order to meet domestic demands. Agriculture Minster Elena Skrynnik said that exports this year would be less than 20 million tonnes, lower than 21 million tonnes last year.

Russia is the third largest wheat exporter and the fall in supply is pushing wheat prices up in international markets. This will result in a boomerang effect on the prices of other products.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin assured that regions suffering from the drought will be given financial assistance.