Agricultural enterprises are experiencing a shortage of seasonal workers. The most acute shortage is in the berry and apple harvest. A significant portion of the harvest could simply rot—as happened last year. The labor shortage is due to the government's anti-migrant policies. About the problem рассказал President of the Gardeners Association Igor Mukhanin.

Requirements for migrants are becoming more stringent; they must pass a Russian language exam to obtain a work permit. Moreover, starting in 2024, this cannot be done through private organizations, but only through government-approved state institutions.

"Why does he need Russian to pick apples? The foreman knows Russian, and that's enough. We contacted the Ministry of Agriculture for assistance with the personnel issue, but they cited the Ministry of Education, whose requirements for migrants they can't bypass.", Mukhanin said.

For example, the Tambov Region has a good berry harvest, but they haven't managed to collect it all. The same will happen with the apple harvest, Mukhanin believes.

Last year, several thousand tons of apples disappeared from orchards in the Krasnodar region because "the regional governor banned the hiring of migrants," the association's president reported.

This year, the ban on certain types of activities for migrants is already in effect in 51 regions, сообщили in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. This is 11 more regions than last year. In 2023, there were only 15 such regions.