Food security provision as a criterion of the optimization mechanims for modern agricultural policy under conditions of import substitution

Abstract

Today, the issue of food security is particularly important, as in changed regulatory conditions on the back of the WTO accession, the competitiveness of agricultural producers in domestic and foreign markets depends on the effectiveness of policies. The article deals with the problems and peculiarities of food security of Russia under conditions of realization of the strategy of import substitution and food sanctions. The authors specify the scope of the optimum modern agricultural policy in today's conditions of substitution of import. Food security in terms of agricultural self-sufficiency, economic and social efficiency of agricultural policy is considered as a basic criterion for defining the optimum agricultural policy. The objectives were to determine the grades of effectiveness of agricultural policy for food security, which has allowed to identify, to characterize and to develop the existing methodologies in assessment of agricultural policy effectiveness. The authors provide the characteristics of industry-specific and resource-potential approaches, which allow determining absolute and relative effectiveness of agricultural policy in relation to food security. It has been discovered, that planning measures and instruments of agricultural policy at regional level imply disparity in living standards, income, agricultural development and the achieved level of agricultural self-sufficiency in different regions of Russia. Consideration of food security as criterion for defining the optimum agricultural policy under current economic conditions has allowed to substantiate the perspective lines of agricultural policy, the implementation of which should promote agricultural self-sufficiency and maintain physical, social and economic availability of food.