Ukraine sees opportunities for agri-export and livestock reconstruction

Ukraine wants to tap into new export markets for its agricultural products, especially in Africa and Asia. According to Agriculture Minister Vitaliy Koval, the Eastern European country can contribute to global food security in this way.

Koval will try to convince his EU colleagues in Brussels on Monday that future Ukrainian membership of the European Union need not be a threat, but rather offers agriculture an opportunity to chart a new course. 

Ukraine's livestock sector will need to be rebuilt before we can talk about expanding exports. According to Koval, in 1991 there were about 28 million cows in Ukraine, compared to just over 2 million today. 

If the livestock restructuring succeeds, Ukraine could become an “agricultural and dairy Eldorado,” the minister said. Earlier, Koval spoke in a radio interview about a “good export dynamic.” Despite the Russian attack, Ukraine’s agricultural exports would return to pre-war levels, he said. 

The priority now is to further differentiate the supply channels, transport and transportation. Koval sees additional sales potential especially in Africa and Southeast Asia. Countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Bangladesh are said to have shown interest, especially in meat and dairy products. 

However, Koval also made it clear that the country is still in a very dramatic situation as a result of the Russian invasion. He estimated the damage in the agricultural sector alone at around 75 billion euros. Of this, 12 billion euros are so-called indirect damages, for example, as a result of higher transport costs due to the blockade of the Black Sea.

He also looks with concern at what he called “disinformation” about Ukrainian agricultural exports to the EU. “The enemy distorts reality and spreads myths,” Koval said. He denied that the European market would be “flooded” with poultry meat and sugar from Ukraine. For example, the quota for exporting Ukrainian sugar to the EU for next year will be only 109,000 tons, while the EU imports a total of 3 million tons of sugar per year.