Strategic factors of sustainable development of sugar production in the Southern federal district

The sugar industry plays an important role in the Russian economy and the southern Russian regions are the main producers of sugar in Russia (the Southern Federal District ranks the second in the production of white sugar). The specificity of sugar production is expressed in its high dependence on producers of beet raw materials, as well as in the presence of a significant amount of various types of waste, faces many problems of sustainable development in the sugar industry. The purpose of this article is to identify strategic factors for the sustainable development of sugar production, taking into account the challenges and threats of the new reality. In the study of strategic factors of sustainable development of the sugar industry, the authors identify demand factors and supply factors, as well as risk factors and stress factors. It is proved that the main threat to the sustainable development of the sugar industry is currently expressed in the risks of breaking supply chains in the conditions of the crisis caused by Coronavirus. This study focuses on the risk of stability reduction of the supply of beet raw materials. This risk is directly connected with the level of development of beet production in the region. As a result of the analysis, it was revealed that a decrease in the cultivated areas of sugar beet in the Southern Federal District is a stressful factor in the development of sugar industry. To solve this problem, state subsidies are proposed for projects for the development of abandoned agricultural land for beet cultivation. The solution of the problems of environmental sustainability growth of sugar production is associated with the circular economy models. It is concluded that the strategic factors of sustainable development of sugar industry in the South of Russia are directly connected with technological innovations in the agro-industrial sphere of the region, the implementation of which is largely determined by the level of state support for the industry.