Uvarkina Evhenia Yuriivna, director of LLC “Agrofirma ‘Trio’”

Evhenia Uvarkina got higher education in economics, finished training courses in management and organization of personnel according to MVI system. Since 1999, engaged in private business, conducting trading activities. Married, has four children. Since 2001, Evhenia is one of the founders and directors of LLC “Trio XXI” which specializes in the wholesale of sugar and grain in Russia. In 2003 Evhenia Yuriivna, together with her sister and brother, has started agricultural enterprise LLC “Agrofirma ‘Trio’” in Lipetsk region. In 2005 LLC “Agrofirma ‘Trio’” had 9,000 hectares of cultivated land, and in 2008 — 17,000 hectares. The main activities of LLC “Agrofirma ‘Trio’” are sugar beet growing, high-quality commodity grain growing and milk production.

Ms. Evhenia, what made you start dairy business?

We started to work in agricultural sphere in 2003. It was accidentally, I keep saying that this plan is blessed by God. Earlier, from 1998 to 2002, we used to sell grain and sugar, collaborating with agricultural enterprises, things were going well. But once, in early spring, one of district officials appealed to us — saying, Evhenia, I know your persistence, let one of the district farms to be in your ward, it is not too difficult. Actually, the entire economy was in decline: there were no funds for spring sowing, arrears of wages — about 3.5 million rubles. Without understanding of what is awaiting for us, we started work. As we were told, deposit a little and get a little more. Certainly, the official achieved his goal, he reported that the area will be sown in spring, the issue of wages will be resolved somehow. As for us, we had nowhere to step back. Our principle of work is to work thoroughly and technologically. We understood that the maximum efficient production would maximize profit. Just it. In autumn 2003, we took another farm that experienced almost the same situation... And we got 250 cows. And as it turned out later, we had no right to cut them - ban of the administration. We became hostages to circumstances.

Well, you have had no other choice except of going into cattle breeding, right?

Well, yes. Therefore, in the autumn of 2004, we went to the Agro-Soyuz. There we met Elman Orudzhov. In Agro-Union it was the first time when I heard and saw that farming can be business, and this should be business. We started thinking seriously about the reconstruction, and the administration continued acting tough, so there was the only way: practicing cattle breeding seriously. In winter 2004, we picked up the building for the reconstruction, we had not decided to build a new complex yet.

In 2005, we traveled to Austria, Holland, the Czech Republic, we tried to determine what livestock we needed.

In autumn 2005, we delivered the first batch of heifers, in 2006 we received the result of the first lactation — 6,700 kilograms of milk from Symental.

See full version in Milk and Farm Journal, № 2, September, 2010.