In order to fulfill the set task of achieving GDP growth rates above the world level by 2021, an increase in investment of up to 25% of the country’s GDP is required by 2024. At the same time, domestic demand for products of the agricultural sector is growing insignificantly. Overproduction in some items puts pressure on prices, so the need to develop exports is felt more and more acutely. The development of exports of agricultural products in Russia in recent years is one of the priority areas. The activities of enterprises to increase exports are supported by the state support measures, therefore the amount of products to be supplied for export is constantly growing. The article provides the results of the analysis of the current state of export activity of agricultural enterprises in the Kaluga region. The factors that hinder the development of export potential and the measures necessary to reduce their negative impact are identified. The promising areas for the development of export potential, such as development of cluster-network associations, digitization of processes for the production and sales of goods for export, application and diversification of production, etc., are shown.

The article discloses, systematizes and supplements the fundamentals of managing the competitiveness of agricultural enterprises integrated into clusters, as well as the cluster structures themselves, considering the current provisions of economic theory and the theory of managing large socio-economic systems, and using the appropriate methodology. Approaches to managing the competitiveness of agricultural enterprises included in clusters using competitive strategies are discussed. The organizational and economic mechanism of creating an agrarian cluster is shown in order to increase the competitiveness of not only enterprises, but also the cluster as a whole, considering external and internal backbone factors. The strategy for increasing the competitiveness of agricultural clusters considers the concept of ‘competitiveness of an agricultural cluster’ as its basic characteristic that is formed from intra-cluster mechanisms of cooperation and interaction of cluster enterprises, which reflects the ability of participants to generate innovative technologies, produce new competitive products and promote them to target markets, including global ones, and, thus, maintain and increase competitive advantages in the field of specialization of the agricultural cluster. The article presents a technique for assessing the achievement of target benchmarks of the strategy for increasing the competitiveness of an agricultural cluster taking into consideration the competitive potential of cluster member enterprises along with the definition of the set of cluster effects obtained.

The article examines the use of waste from the crop-growing branch of agriculture in the manufacture of eco-friendly composite materials used in the reconstruction, modernization and construction of objects of the agro-industrial complex (AIC). As fillers for the manufacture of composite construction and finishing materials, waste products from the processing of agricultural crops of plant origin, such as fiber-like particles obtained from the straw of annual plants and remaining after harvesting raw cotton in the form of cotton stalks, are proposed.

Департамент научно-технологической политики и образования Федеральное государственное бюджетное научное учреждение «Российский научно-исследовательский институт информации и технико-экономических исследований по инженерно-техническому обеспечению агропромышленного комплекса»

In recent years, the number of unemployed persons, low-income families, refugees and families in difficult life situations has increased, which has led to a decrease in the standard of living. The paper is devoted to the problem of poverty in the aspect of the analysis of rural areas and the quality of life of the rural population. The population of rural areas is more vulnerable and often lacks the factors necessary to improve the quality of life. Social problems in rural areas and factors of decreasing the quality of life and their consequences are shown. The analysis has showed that the main source of income for the able-bodied rural population is labor activity, including personal subsidiary farming. The poverty rate varies across the constituent entities of the Russian Federation from 3.8% to 43.3%. In general, the poverty level increased by 38% of the total number of constituent entities of the Russian Federation in 2019.Despite the relative progress in solving social problems in rural areas in recent years, including that thanks to the implementation of measures of state programs, the quality of life of the rural population not only remains low level, but also tend to decrease. In this regard, the study of poverty as the main factor in reducing the quality of life of the rural population becomes relevant. In order to solve more effective the poverty problems, it is necessary to revise the principles of budgeting at different levels and introduce tools that have shown high efficiency in foreign countries.