🚜 Due to abnormal drought and spring frosts, some agricultural enterprises in the Kherson region have lost up to 100% of their wheat harvest, a key crop for Ukraine’s food security. If the government does not intervene, sown areas will be reduced, leading to an increase in bread prices.
Source: OBOZREVATEL
📄 This information comes from a letter by several Ukrainian agricultural associations addressed to Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, published by the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Council. They described the situation in agriculture as critical due to:
- abnormal drought;
- spring frosts;
- restrictions by the European Union (EU) on Ukrainian agricultural exports.
🌾 The worst situation is in the southern and eastern regions, especially in Kherson and Dnipropetrovsk. Due to prolonged lack of precipitation and no access to irrigation (following the destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant), crops on tens of thousands of hectares have been completely or partially lost.
📊 “According to a survey by the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Council among Kherson farmers, over 55,000 hectares of crops have been destroyed in the region. On significant areas, wheat crop losses — a key crop for food security — range from 50% to 100%,” the letter states.
⚠️ Due to the war, agricultural insurance is practically non-functional, so the vast majority of these crops were uninsured. Additionally, the financial situation of farms in frontline areas does not allow them to independently bear the risks of natural disasters.
🚫 Furthermore, the EU reinstated quotas on Ukrainian agricultural exports, delivering an additional blow to farmers. “This combination of destructive factors places producers in a hopeless situation,” the letter to Shmyhal reads.
📉 Overall, areas sown with grain crops and gross harvest volumes have been decreasing for the fourth consecutive year – in 2024, they were 21% and 27% smaller, respectively, than in 2021. According to USDA forecasts, wheat production in Ukraine in 2025 will be about 23 million tons — nearly 10 million tons less than in 2021.
💬 Against this background, farmers are asking the government to allocate subsidies per hectare of lost crops for affected farms, as well as to launch…державну програму страхування сільськогосподарських культур та багаторічних насаджень. Інакше у наступному маркетинговому році площі посівів пшениці в Україні неминуче скоротяться, що спричинить зменшення експорту та зростання цін на хліб.
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