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Due to the blockade of the seaports of Greater Odesa, the situation in the agricultural sector is currently economically worse than it was in March-April 2022.
This was stated by the Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food, Taras Vysotsky, at a briefing, according to Interfax-Ukraine.
“Currently, the situation in the sector is much worse than it was in March or April 2022. At that time, the previous year, 2021, was the most profitable, perhaps, in the history of Ukraine’s agricultural sector. Accordingly, the buffer was the best. Now, it is absent,” the minister admitted.
According to him, in 2022, farmers had significant carry-over stocks and a financial reserve that allowed them to operate despite expensive logistics. At the same time, in 2025-2026, farmers primarily worked with small profits or tried to survive, without the opportunity to build up reserves.
In 2022, the agricultural sector, according to Vysotsky’s assessment, had a financial reserve of about $10 billion, whereas today this buffer is already gone.
The minister also announced another difference – the readiness of farmers for the autumn sowing campaign: at the beginning of the full-scale war, the material and technical resources necessary for the sowing campaign had already been purchased. Currently, however, the blockade began in July, when farmers are just preparing for the autumn sowing. At the same time, there are no fuel reserves, and its price is high.
Recall:
From August 1 to August 18, Ukraine exported 900,000 tons of agricultural products, which is 31% of the volumes that could have been exported with free access to logistics.
A deficit of buckwheat in Ukraine is not expected, but its price may increase by up to 15%. There are no threats of a physical food deficit against the backdrop of Russian attacks on distribution centers.
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