Potato harvesting rates are currently higher than last year, with 240,000 tons harvested by mid-July, which is 36% higher than the same period last year (+64,000 tons), the Ministry of Agriculture reported. The largest volumes have been collected in the Astrakhan Region, Krasnodar Territory, and Stavropol Territory. Work is also actively underway in new regions, including Kabardino-Balkaria, Volgograd Region, and Crimea. Early potato harvesting in Russia has entered an active phase, confirmed Alexei Krasilnikov, executive director of the Potato Union, to Agroinvestor. "First and foremost, in southern regions — Krasnodar and Stavropol Territories, Rostov and Astrakhan Regions," the expert explains. "Moreover, the Bryansk Region joined the early potato harvest a week and a half ago. Although this is an abnormally early harvest for the region, it was expected. There was very warm weather in central Russia in late March and early April. Local potato growers took advantage of this ...