There have been a variety of products in those countries where the saying, “bread is the beginning of all” finds its place. Bread is one of the most consumed foods in Russia that many people are involved in production. According to this culture, everything can be lost, money can be wasted and the life would be upside down; but if there is bread at home, there is still hope. 

BAKERY PRODUCTS Bakery products particularly bread are regarded as the basic need in Russia. So much so that the Russians are known to be one of the countries consuming the most bread in the world. However, in recent years, healthy consumption habits that have risen around the world in general have led to a reduction in demand for bakery products, which are generally calorie-high products in this country. Russians gradually give less place to bread in their daily diets. Nevertheless, seasons also affect the consumption. Much bread is consumed during winter when compared to summer days. Influenced by Turkish, Arabic, Chinese and French cuisines, Russian Cuisine is very rich in terms of diversity. In Russia where different ethnic groups live, the cuisine varies according to regional and ethnic groups. The interchange of cuisine culture between regions was slow due to the huge size of country, plus transportation was difficult during winter days. A property of Russians’ characteristics is that groups preserved their traditional habits and cultures. After Turkey and Germany, Russia is among the top bread consuming countries with 80 kilograms of bread consumption per person per year. In Russia, bread with sourdough and black bread with rye intense flour are cooked. During bread making, different kinds of aroma are obtained with different kind of sourdough.

There is a saying in Russia: “Bread is the beginning of all.” One can experience any kind of problem in daily life; life can go worse. But if there is a slice of bread at home to eat, people say everything will get back on the rails. Compared to other countries, many workers are women in the bread sector. The bakery product sector will grow 2 percent in Russia until 2019 although the Euromonitor named the sector in Russia as ‘saturated.’ This is because many Russians start preferring packaged, quality and high-class breads rather than the traditional ones. This tendency is in line with demands for healthy and diet products around the world.

Russian breads are similar to German’s. Russian breads and breads of Eastern European countries look alike. In Russia there are many different types of bread. But the most popular are Borodinsky and Karavay. Borodinsky is preferred by diabetics due to the fact that the bread is made from rye. The baking process is similar to pan bread. Karavay bread is generally round and large. There is no decoration on it.

PASTA SECTOR ATTRACTS TURKISH COMPANIES There has been growing interest to pasta in Russia. The pasta market is growing in volume and value. There are two main reasons for this tendency. First of all, the cost of pasta is not high; the second is that the popularity of Italian cuisine has been growing in Russia. The mainstream media usually covers stories on Italian restaurants, whose number are rapidly increasing. That leads fundamental change on Russian people’s view on pasta.

In Russia, the pasta is gradually gaining a status of main dishes of Italian type instead of being a side dish. Despite these, Russians consume less pasta compared to countries that traditionally consume pasta high. According to the International Pasta Organization’s figures in 2014, an average person consumes 25.3 kg of pasta per year in Italy, while this figure is 16 kg in Tunisia, which is second in the list. The annual consumption of pasta by the Russians in the 13th position is currently calculated as 8 kg.

When it comes to production, Russia finds itself in higher places. According to the organization’s 2015 survey, while Italy produces 3 million 246 thousand tons of pasta per year, the US ranks the second with 2 million tons. Russia’s annual pasta production amounted to 1 million 83 thousand tons, ranking the fifth in the list. As Turkey is among the top pasta exporter countries, Russia is among target markets for the country. The value of the country’s pasta export is around 140-150 million USD.

Since Russia and Turkey are neighboring countries and there has been good relations between two countries, the Russian market catch Turkish companies’ eye. That’s why Turkish companies show great interest in food fairs in Russia. In many fairs, the number of Turkish companies exceeds those of Italy. Due to product promotion group’s efforts in previous years, the interest in Turkish pasta increased because of its quality and price advantages.

INNOVATORS WILL FORGE AHEAD BISCUITS SECTOR According to the figures given by Food Market, a Russian consumes about 4.5 kilograms biscuits on average per year. The survey showed that the demand is higher in urban areas compared to rural areas. The average annual consumption of rural areas is 2.5 kg, while in cities the figure stands at 9.8 kilograms. In the Russian biscuit sector, demand for packaged products, which are easier to transport and store, is increasing. According to Euromonitor’s figures, the Russian biscuits market grew by 14 percent in 2014.

The Russian biscuit market, which is gaining great popularity with international giants, is expected to grow further in the coming period. Particularly product with new tastes, coating and filling will increase sales while new products will expand the market. Biscuits are one of the most popular products consumed with tea, which is very popular in Russia. It is expected that this tendency will grow and innovative products will increase its sales.