The origins of the Russian initiative

In October 2024, Russia, one of the world’s largest grain exporters, proposed the creation of a Grain Exchange for the group’s countries. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced this idea at the summit of the association’s member states in Kazan.

Foreign delegations approved the initiative, seeing in it great potential for developing cooperation in the field of food security.

In an exclusive comment for TV BRICS, Marina Panyuzheva, PhD, international expert at the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC), emphasised that this initiative could strengthen economic cooperation, form an independent mechanism for settlement in national currencies and ensure food security. In addition, Panyuzheva pointed to the great prospects for growth in grain exports with the creation of such an exchange.

“According to the Union of Grain Exporters and Producers, taking into account the expansion of BRICS from 2024, the participating countries will harvest 1.24 billion tonnes of grain this year, which is 44 per cent of global production. The United States ranks second with 450 million tonnes, but China, India, Russia, and Brazil exceed the United States threefold in terms of production volume,” she stated.

A number of experts, in turn, believe that this step will be very important for the implementation of the tasks set by the UN in the Agenda for Sustainable Development for the period up to 2030.

According to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev, this project will create all the necessary conditions for the formation of independent price indicators for grain. He also said that this will contribute to a more objective assessment of the value of agricultural products on global commodity markets.

Discussions in Russia’s northern capital

The issue of creating a BRICS Grain Exchange was widely discussed at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF 2025) in June.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Federation Maksim Markovich said at the time that Russia would soon send its concept for the creation of a grain exchange to the countries of the association. As he noted, the idea is currently at the development stage.

The UAE welcomes the Russian Federation’s initiative

At SPIEF 2025, Dmitry Patrushev and UAE Minister of Economy Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri discussed cooperation on the BRICS Grain Exchange.

It is clear that this initiative is of great importance to the UAE, given that about a third of the grain imported into the UAE is Russian. Such assessments were previously given by Andrey Terekhin, Russia’s trade representative in the UAE.

“Due to their natural conditions, the Emirates are very dependent on imported food. Imports account for more than 90 per cent,” he said.

Moscow’s assessment

Russia, the initiator of the idea, sees great prospects in it. Petr Chekmarev, Chairman of the Committee for the Development of the Agro-Industrial Complex of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Russia, emphasised the high demand for the creation of such an exchange in the current economic situation.

In an exclusive commentary for TV BRICS, he said that the member states represent almost half of the world’s population, so grain consumption in them is very high. According to him, there are regions that produce a lot of grain, including Russia, Brazil, and China. There are also countries where production is low. Given the current economic and political situation, the countries should work more closely within the union, strengthen this structure and increase cooperation, the expert believes.

“This agricultural product is a measure of the economy and diplomacy. And food plays a key role here, it determines policy,” Chekmarev added.

In his opinion, such a platform and work with grain in these countries will be very relevant and in demand.

“The main trade on it will be for the BRICS countries, for those who want to buy grain through it. But I believe that trade will not be limited to the BRICS countries, but will also involve other countries that will buy grain. This platform will operate similarly to other global commodity exchanges,”

Russia’s grain export potential

Russia has enormous resources for harvesting and exporting grain. According to Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) estimates, in 2024, the gross grain harvest amounted to about 125.9 million tonnes.

According to the Russian Ministry of Agriculture, grain exports from Russia reached a record 72 million tonnes in 2024. As Rosstat points out in this regard, the key importers of Russian grain in 2024 were:

• Egypt (11.1 million tonnes)

• Turkey (7.2 million tonnes)

• Iran (5.6 million tonnes)

Russia is steadily increasing its grain exports. According to Agroexport estimates, by 2030, grain exports from the country could exceed 75 million tonnes.

South Africa, one of the major importers of grain and wheat, could become a regional logistics hub

Russia has traditionally been the largest exporter of grain to South Africa. Experts are convinced that the opening of the Grain Exchange will give South Africa the opportunity to purchase Russian wheat at more favourable prices and in a simplified manner.

As Russian analysts note, South Africa is an important regional agricultural hub and transit hub on the continent. Grain and food for other countries in the region pass through its seaports. The port infrastructure, in particular the ports of Durban and Cape Town, enables efficient logistics in the region.

According to their estimates, this logistics can be used for transit within the BRICS Grain Exchange.

Thus, the creation of the BRICS exchange will have a positive impact on the economy and infrastructure of South Africa, as well as other countries on the African continent.

Assessments by experts from South Africa

Ndivhuho Tshikovhi, Research Fellow of the Faculty of Management Studies at the Durban University of Technology, noted that South Africa views this initiative positively. In an exclusive commentary to TV BRICS, he said that South Africa is considering this proposal through the prism of geopolitical pragmatism and economic opportunities.

He states that as one of the founders of BRICS, the country supports this initiative as part of a broader agenda aimed at multi-vector reform and it will be an incentive to use the currencies of BRICS member countries.

According to analysts, South Africa sees this initiative as a safeguard against global uncertainty, especially in light of growing geopolitical tensions.

The expert believes that South African agribusiness leaders will be able to find advantages for expanding trade prospects – for example, they will be given broader access to markets in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, China, and the UAE, which is opening up thanks to the expansion of BRICS. However, in his opinion, the country remains very cautious about “excessive dependence” on imports.

“As a net importer of grain (mainly wheat), South Africa imported about 2 million tonnes in 2022. These figures clearly show the country’s moderate but clear dependence on global grain supplies,” Tshikovhi concluded.

The significance of the initiative for the Arab world

Most Arab states are critically dependent on grain imports due to climatic conditions.

Egypt is traditionally considered the largest importer of grain in the Arab world. Year after year, the country increases its grain imports. It is expected that in 2025–2026, Egypt will import up to 13 million tonnes of wheat.

The significance of such a step for Arab countries is enormous. Naser Abu Nassar, Ambassador of the BRICS+ Business Communications Support Fund to Jordan, said in an exclusive commentary to TV BRICS, this initiative is of strategic importance for the entire Arab world.

He also noted that Arab countries, which were grain exporters in the 1960s, became grain importers after a period of geopolitical instability.

“This initiative complements the Russian-Chinese project to create a multipolar world based on the principles of cooperation, brotherhood and mutual respect between states and peoples,” Abu Nassar concluded.

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