Abstract. Purpose of the study is improving the mechanism of state regulation of agricultural producers, due to the need to overcome the pandemic and prevent the recurrence of similar scenarios in the future. The object of research is an agricultural producer, belonging to the category of small business. The subject of the study is the relationship between the object of study and the state represented by government bodies and institutions involved in the provision of state support that may arise in the process of overcoming the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Research Methods. A theoretical analysis was used to identify threats from the coronavirus pandemic to agriculture and the agro-industrial complex as a whole. Comparison as a method of cognition was used when comparing the requirements of small businesses for state support and measures actually taken by the government. A systematic approach and modeling were used to summarize the experience of the functioning of the economy in a pandemic and to create patterns of behavior of small agribusiness entities. The method of scientific abstraction made it possible to present the most probable state of small business in the agro-industrial complex, depending on the provision or refusal of state regulatory influence on the economy in order to eliminate the damage caused by the pandemic. The rule of combining historical and logical in their unity allowed us to look at the coronavirus pandemic not as a unique phenomenon in the history of modern economics, but as a negative phenomenon that will potentially be reproduced in the future and the logic of counteraction which requires active intervention at the state level, and in the future - generalization, analysis and improvement of the experience gained. The theoretical and methodological basis of the study is composed of statistical data on the state of the world economy, consumption, unemployment, publications of news agencies and government officials on measures taken to deal with the consequences of the pandemic, existing programs for the development of the digital economy, as well as publications of leading scientists in the agricultural sector on digital problems economics. Results. Within the scope of this study, there were characterized the most negative consequences of the pandemic for the agro-industrial complex, there was carried out the analysis of announced and already taken measures to support entrepreneurship and were described behavior models of small agribusiness entities in the current situation. Scientific novelty. The authors have developed a new method for the rapid diagnosis of a small agribusiness subject, claiming to receive state support for regional and industry programs.

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Abstract. The purpose of the research is to study the tools necessary to improve the quality of natural and organic agricultural products, as well as to increase the volume of their receipts and sales in the Russian agro-industrial complex and retail chains. In the context of the current crisis and sanctions from the United States and a number of countries of the European Union the problem of food security in our country is of particular importance. One of the main tasks of agriculture is not only solving the problem of import substitution by increasing the production of essential products, but also improving their quality. The analysis of the materials made it possible to assess the current state of the food market in Russia. The state mechanism for regulating prices in the food market was analyzed. To solve this problem, it is proposed to use the positive experience of China, Western European countries and our country in different historical periods. Methods. The basic research methods of the posed problem applied in the work are comparison, deduction, modeling, historical and logical methods. The result of the research carried out in this article is an attempt to establish the reasons for the insufficiently developed and implemented subsidized mechanism of state financing in the agricultural sector. In the course of the research, the prerequisites and reasons for the current circumstances were considered and indicated. The scientific novelty is based on the authors’ conclusion of a scientifically grounded concept about the need to bring the branches of agriculture within the framework of a mixed market economy into the non-market sector. This, in turn, can provide an urgent need for self-sufficiency.

The achievement of market economy balance state is a long-term problem and it has not been solved yet practically, as evidenced by the entire historical experience of the world economy. Although a significant number of scientific publications is known in this regard, related mainly with the development of balance theory and methodology at different territorial and sectoral levels. According to I. Schumpeter [11], the concept of "balance in the economy has to do with the uniqueness of its manifestation and can be viewed as an abstraction from the methodological aspect". Some economists-theoreticians defend the "multiplicity of balances", proceeding from the market model and the exchange at non-equilibrium prices [6,10,7]. That is, they consider basically the task of a balanced price achievement at the market. Many researchers reduce their theoretical positions to the level of economic models (the methods of evolutionary game experimental theory, the theory of complex systems, dynamic stochastic equilibrium models, etc.) [1,5]. The striving for price equilibrium at the market is limited by the peculiarity of its model, therefore, in our opinion, it is possible to develop the theoretical designs for an equilibrium state achievement by this criterion only in a short time interval.

Currently the majority of modern electric arc furnaces (EAF) are equipped with bottom eccentric taphole system. This design allows to tap metal from EAF to ladle with the minimum amount of furnace slag, leaving a part of the liquid metal in EAF for subsequent heats (“liquid start”), if this residue is sufficient. In this case, taphole has several disadvantages: - it is not completely excluded that the oxidized furnace slag enters the ladle, especially with a low level of liquid residue in the EAF, the mass of captured slag in the ladle increases; - tapping time is unstable during taphole system campaign and depends on the wear of its constituent refractories; - periodically required to replace taphole refractories, thus it’s necessary to stop EAF. Under the conditions of the casting and rolling complex JSC “Vyksa Steel Works” work has carried out to change shape EAF’s taphole system, which made it possible to reduce the effect of these disadvantages on the efficiency of the EAF.