Businesses from Vietnam and Thailand have made direct investments in the Russian dairy sector and it is helping Russia to replace the dairy imports it lost after it placed an embargo on western food imports in 2014.

TG Group, a Vietnamese dairy producer, commenced the building of milk farms in the Moscow region this week as part of its 10-year project worth over €2.4bn.

Another investment backed by the state-owned Russian Direct Investment Fund agreed to join forces with the Charoen Pokphand Group from Thailand on a joint investment for the construction of a €900m milk and dairy complex in the Ryazan region of Russia.

Russian Agriculture Minister Alexander Tkachev said: “It is not the easiest time for our country. We live in conditions of food sanctions and when the Vietnamese government supports us, it means a lot to us.”

Thai Huong, group chair of TH Group, said the first stage of the project will lead to the production of 800 tonnes of milk and products per day, and these are expected to reach the Russian market next year.