Digital Meat: How Robots Are Revolutionizing Russian Pork Production
A major Russian pork producer is taking automation to the next level, turning to robotics and AI to enhance productivity, quality, and traceability—from genetics to distribution.
Full Automation Takes Root
At the 2025 St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Vladimir Maslov, Chairman of the Board of the AGROECO Group, signed an investment agreement with Alexander Gusev, Governor of the Voronezh Region, to expand development in the region. The investment will increase to 17.5 billion rubles, supporting full automation of meat production.
AGROECO is rapidly implementing robotics into its business workflows and has emerged as one of Russia’s leading agri-tech companies. The company already operates several robots, developed using domestic software, that are streamlining financial and operational resources across departments.
The first robot was deployed in the finance department in October 2024 to generate reports on contractors. Currently, two robots are operational, and five more are in testing. The automation initiative spans logistics, procurement, accounting, and other functions.
One AI-driven robot monitors customer reviews of AGROECO’s products—a task previously handled manually by employees who browsed retail websites, identified feedback, categorized it, and entered it into internal systems. Each review took up to five minutes to process. The AI bot now performs the same task in one second, eliminating the risk of missed entries.
Production Under AI Control
AGROECO Group is now a vertically integrated agribusiness. It cultivates crops, produces compound feed at its own factories, and supplies feed directly to its pig farms. The company also manages genetic material development—a highly technical field requiring digital infrastructure and artificial intelligence.
“Genetics is an advanced, tech-intensive area that depends heavily on digitalization and AI,” said Vladimir Maslov, Chairman of AGROECO. “We’re exploring further investments to scale our capabilities and expand both domestic and export sales.”
Becoming an Agri-Tech Company
AGROECO is at the forefront of adopting new technologies in agriculture. Its facilities are equipped with modern machinery and robotics. The IT system is integrated with government and veterinary agencies, while relationships with business partners are fully automated.
“We shipped our first batch of genetic stock to Kamchatka using augmented reality tools. The client didn’t need to fly in—they used AR glasses to remotely evaluate breeding animals across dozens of parameters,” Maslov explained.
Digital transformation is ongoing. According to AGROECO’s roadmap, by 2030, automation will cover 90% of all core processes—including production, logistics, finance, CRM, analytics, and customer feedback systems. The goal is to evolve into a full-fledged agri-tech company.
Leading by Example
AGROECO’s model is expected to be replicated across the Russian agricultural sector. This is supported by the Ministry of Agriculture’s 2019 Digital Agriculture technology platform, which promotes the use of domestic software across livestock, processing, and even grain production in vertically integrated corporations.
Automation improves product quality while reducing production costs, ultimately making meat more affordable for consumers.
Russia is also entering global markets with its agri-tech innovations. “We are negotiating genetics exports to neighboring countries and opening new markets in Southeast Asia,” Maslov noted.
Despite sanctions, Russia’s agricultural sector is proving its global competitiveness and is ready to share its production expertise with the world.
