Basic Element to ship tons of pork to Asian countries

The agricultural division of the Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska's company Basic Element plans to export pork, wheat and soybeans to China to take advantage of the "explosive" growth seen in the Asian country.

Basic Element, a diversified group with stakes in everything from energy to aviation, plans to start producing 10,000 to 15,000 metric tons of pork in Siberia and ship it to China and other Asian countries, said Andrey Oleynik, managing director of the company's agribusiness management directorate.

"China is one of the fastest growing consumption markets," Oleynik said in Moscow on June 15. "The growth is explosive both in terms of food consumption and other products consumption. That is why it would be silly not to focus on China."