OREANDA-NEWS. March 23, 2011. Removing the export ban, allocation of the grain from the inventory fund among the regions, pricing mechanisms and global forecasts for grain prices were widely discussed at the I International Conference “Grain-Growing South” that took place in Rostov-on-Don, Russiaб reported the press-centre of FAS Russia.

The conference was attended by over 200 representatives from agricultural agencies, the largest grain producers in the south of Russia, the heads and experts of the companies involved in grain processing and storage, experts of surveying companies, financial and investments institutions from Russia and other countries.

The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) was represented by Deputy Head of FAS Pavel Subbotin. He pointed out that the Antimonopoly Service continuously enforces the law on the food markets in general and the grain market in particular. Deputy Head of FAS said that distribution of fodder grain was a coercive and temporary measure and the issue of exporting food grain would be very important. It is essential to establish free movement of grain and eliminate administrative barriers, whatever excuse was used to raise them. Regarding grain distribution, FAS Russia will control timely shipments, transparency of distribution procedures and elevator prices.

The FAS Russia’s goal is to prevent anticompetitive actions of grain elevators, which ultimately can have an adverse impact upon the end-consumers. The antimonopoly authority continuously monitors the market of socially - important food products, in particular, by conducting analysis of the market of services provided by elevator complexes for accepting and storage of grain and grain-processing products.

Also when the antimonopoly bodies investigate transactions related to formation of vertically-integrated business units, they issue determinations aimed at developing competition and protecting the interests of the consumers of the grain storage services.

“These measures will suffice to maintain healthy competitive environment in this field”, concluded Pavel Subbotin.