The agricultural cluster of the Leningrad region will abandon traditional vegetable crops. On 12 December said the Governor of the region Alexander Drozdenko, the correspondent of IA REGNUM.

He recalled that this year the potato crop was lost and the Leningrad region, finally decided on "a bold step".

"We will gradually start to abandon such traditional culture which we have always been in agriculture — potatoes, cabbage, carrots. We understand that today in such difficult weather conditions, even using modern technology, we cannot compete with Belarusian potatoes, carrots and cabbage, to say nothing of Egypt or Turkey. We do not charge, as in Egypt, two crops of potatoes a year," said Drozdenko.

He explained that the reduction in area under vegetables does not mean the reduction of agricultural areas in General. Vacant hectares will go under the production of crops. According to the Governor, in the region at current levels of livestock and poultry, not enough feed.

As reported IA REGNUM, the second year in a row due to weather conditions in the region marked by a poor harvest in crop production. In 2017 were collected only 93% of the volume of grain harvest last year, 76% of potatoes and 90% of vegetables. In 2016, the Leningrad region have also suffered significant losses, will miss almost a third of the harvest due to the abnormally rainy and cold weather in summer.