Chinese competition puts pressure on Don region poultry producer
A representative of the Damate Group says China is creating obstacles for Russian exports while sharply increasing its own poultry shipments to Russia.
Feb 5, 2026 0
Chinese exports of duck meat to Russia are increasing significantly.
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Since 2025, China has begun impeding access for Russian poultry products to its market. At the same time, imports of Chinese duck and turkey into Russia have sharply increased. This was reported by a representative of Damate Group (GC «Damate»), Yevgeny Ivanov, at a platform of the Rostov Region Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
According to him, in 2025, China increased deliveries of poultry products to Russia by 40%, with the volume of imported duck growing threefold. «That»s by volume. In monetary terms, I won«t even name the figure, because, figuratively speaking, we export bones and scraps there, while back come breast fillets, legs, whole carcasses, and other valuable parts,» Ivanov noted.
He named the saturation of the Chinese market with its own meat products as the reason. Russian exports are now subject to full customs inspections on far-fetched pretexts. «It gets to the point of absurdity. Customs counts how much residual feathering is on our product with skin. Whether it meets their standards,» the company representative said.
To date, China has banned supplies from 12 Russian poultry plants, citing non-compliance with epizootic or quality standards. In response, the Russian Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance (Rosselkhoznadzor) has strengthened veterinary control and is conducting additional tests on each container of poultry meat sent for export to any country.
Damate Group is a major agricultural holding owned by Naum Babayev. The company is engaged in the breeding and processing of turkey, duck, and lamb, and milk production. Products are sold under the brands «Indilight,» «Ozerka,» BazarCo, «Karachayevskaya Chernaia,» Salima, and «Tolko!». In the Rostov Region, the holding includes LLC «Indushkin Dvor» (turkey breeding) and LLC «Novye Utinye Fermy» (duck breeding). «Indushkin Dvor» was registered in May 2020 to restart turkey production at the facilities of the bankrupt «Eurodon-Yug» owned by Vadim Vaneyev.
«We have no questions for Rosselkhoznadzor, we understand and are cooperative, we have nothing to hide. But the problem is not veterinary, it»s political. Because of this situation, we are forced to redirect our flows to Africa, where both the sales structure is different and prices are lower. But in Africa we will be forced to compete with the same China, which owns most of the local ports. And here, competition risks being clearly not in our favor,« Ivanov stated.
Pressure is also being exerted on the Russian domestic market. Even considering logistics costs, prices for Chinese duck reach the cost level of domestic products. «This puts pressure on the domestic market, forcing us to operate at a loss. The import of duck products is such an unpleasant warning signal for us. Of course, everyone unanimously says that Chinese products are nowhere near ours in terms of quality. But mainly the buyers of Chinese products are the B2B segment. These are not end consumers, and in processing, the difference in product quality is hard to discern,» Ivanov explained.
The First Deputy Governor of the Rostov Region, Alexei Gospodarev, promised to look into the situation. According to him, the authorities know «where and how to write» in such cases. The issue may be raised during a visit by a delegation of the regional government headed by Governor Yuri Slyusar to China, planned for 2026.
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