Russia's economic turmoil: Nightmare or opportunity for beef operation?

Moscow and the IMF agree that the Russian economy will shrink by 3% this year. For some, though, the crisis brings new opportunities. In Bryansk, 400km (249 miles) south-west of Moscow, young cows are being herded by ranchers on horseback. The 7,000 cattle represent just a fraction of a huge new cattle-breeding venture, involving tens of thousands of animals sprawled across farmland the size of England. Alexander Linnik and his brother Viktor were already the country's biggest pork producers when their firm, Miratorg, started breeding prime Aberdeen Angus beef cattle (imported from Australia and the US) in 2010. It is now the biggest such plant in Russia and Europe. Last year, the complex was processing 100 head of cattle per day. Next year, the company says it will process up to 1,000. But such rapid growth would have been impossible without Western sanctions - Moscow's counter-sanctions shut off Russia's domestic market to foreign food exporters, eliminating much of the competition. Then the rouble crashed, making meat very cheap to export. "We need the rouble to stay cheap for our exports - so the sanctions have been useful," says Linnik...more