Head of Russia–Brazil Business Council Hosts Webinar for Brazilian Business

Andrey Guryev, the head of the Russia–Brazil Business Council and President of the Russian Fertilizer Producers Association, hosted a webinar for Brazilian partners on doing business in Russia in the current geopolitical environment.

The event, organised by the Russia–Brazil Business Council; the Brazil–Russia Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Culture and Tourism; and the international law firm Heres Legal, was one in a series of webinars for Russian and Brazilian businesses.

Representatives of Russian and Brazilian government agencies and business communities discussed pertinent issues when it comes to cooperation between Russian and Brazilian businesses in the current rapidly changing environment. In particular, the discussion touched upon the promotion of Russian–Brazilian investments, procedures for establishing cooperation between foreign suppliers and large retailers, support in ensuring food security and sustainability, as well as legal aspects of doing business in Russia for companies from friendly countries.

In opening the webinar, the head of the Russia–Brazil Business Council, Andrey Guryev, stressed the that the two countries had increased bilateral trade to record levels despite the emergence of new global challenges.

“In 2022, trade between Russia and Brazil increased by 13% in comparison with 2021. This was driven by a mutual desire on the part of our business communities and political establishments to maintain and develop interests shared by Russia and Brazil and to jointly respond to new challenges,” said Mr Guryev, noting the importance of the Russia–Brazil Intergovernmental Commission for the development of trade and economic relations and the launch of new mutually beneficial projects between the two countries.

According to the President of the Brazil–Russia Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Culture and Tourism, Gilberto Ramos, the two countries still have considerable potential to strengthen cooperation.

“Brazil and Russia play a fundamental role in BRICS, both in bilateral and multilateral relations and on the global agenda. Meetings like today’s are very important for solving logistical, banking and financial problems. As representatives of the business community, we need to maintain strong connections,” said Mr Ramos.

Russia’s Ambassador to Brazil, Alexey Labetsky, emphasised the leading role played by Russian mineral fertilizer producers in developing business ties between the two countries.

Amid rapid growth in trade between Russia and Brazil, mineral fertilizers remain the main driver, accounting for 67% of Russian exports and 23% of Brazil’s total demand for fertilizer imports. A fifth of all Russian fertilizers exported to Brazil are manufactured by PhosAgro, Russia’s leading producer of phosphate-based fertilizers.

“I am firmly convinced that, in the short term, our main trade and investment ties will be developed through those large Russian companies that are engaged in the production and supply of fertilizers to Brazil. Brazil has become an agro-industrial giant over the past 20 years, and its soils require constant attention. This is something our companies do well. We need to develop new responses to the current challenges facing the Russian and Brazilian business communities,” said the ambassador.

Vasily Lavrovsky, an advisor to the Head of the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Supervision (Rosselkhoznadzor), stressed the important contribution of the responsible oversight services to uninterrupted trade in food products between the two countries.

“Thanks to Brazil’s balanced position and reciprocal efforts on the part of the Russian Government and business community, trade in the food sector between our two countries in 2022 increased by 23.3% to USD 2.02 billion, and continues to grow. Brazilian supplies of soybeans, coffee, beef, peanuts and raw tobacco have been major contributors. Russian wheat exports to Brazil reached 360 thousand tonnes for the first time,” noted Mr Lavrovsky.

Valentin Borodin, the head of the Brazil department at the Moscow office of Heres Legal and a member of the Russia–Brazil Business Council, lauded Russia’s efforts to establish trade relations with friendly countries. The legislative incentives that are now in place in Russia have created unique opportunities for Brazilian companies to enter the Russian market, he stressed.

“In 2022, Russia adopted unprecedented legislative measures to support trade with friendly countries, including the simplification of a number of customs procedures, zero tariffs on a number of ‘critical imports’, insurance for import credits and the liberalisation of parallel imports. As a consequence of the changing environment and the legislative measures taken, there has been a sharp increase in trade with friendly countries,” said Mr Borodin.

Andrey Sharonov, CEO of the National ESG Alliance and a member of PhosAgro’s Board of Directors, pointed to the harmonisation of national standards as one of the key areas of Russian–Brazilian cooperation.

“I would like to express my hope that cooperation between Russia and Brazil will develop precisely in the area of national standards, and that we will be able to coordinate our activities, at least to inform our Brazilian partners about the development of Russia’s national sustainability agenda,” said Mr Sharonov.

An important milestone in the harmonisation of national quality standards was PhosAgro’s receipt an Environmental Quality Label from the Brazilian Association of Technical Standards (ABNT), in December 2022. An audit of the Company’s production facilities was conducted as part of a joint project involving PhosAgro, the ABNT and the Ecological Union certification body to create unified requirements for both the Russian and Brazilian markets for environmentally preferable mineral fertilizers based on the current standard of the Vitality Leaf international system.