Penza, 6 November 2014. PenzaNews. Andrei Burlakov, Minister of Agriculture of the Penza region, sent a letter to Oksana Kuznetsova, head of the regional department of the Federal Antimonopoly Service, with a request to verify the validity of buckwheat price increase, as well as check the suppliers for possible collusion.

© PenzaNewsBuy the photo

He notes in the letter that the need for such request to the FAS was caused by the news about the unpredicted increase in buckwheat demand from the population, reported to the Ministry of Agriculture of the region by the stores.

He also states that the main suppliers of buckwheat in the Penza region are “Altaiskaya skazka” Trade House (Barnaul, Altai Krai) and LLC “Terra” (Abdulino, Orenburg region).

“I request to direct your conclusions to the department of food market and licensing of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Penza region,” the letter of the head of the agricultural department states.

As PenzaNews agency reported earlier, on Wednesday, November 5, the Ministry of Agriculture of the Penza region held a meeting of the working staff on the food market situation.

The representatives of “Magnit,” “Pyatyorochka,” and “Dva Gusya,” reported that they sold more than monthly norm of buckwheat within one week.

Andrei Burlakov, Minister of Agriculture said that the increased interest could have been caused by the information about the poor buckwheat harvest in Altai Krai, which, according to him, is false.

He suggested that the high demand for buckwheat in Penza could be the result of wholesale suppliers’ collusion.