Ukraine farming plummets as a result of war, FAO warns

More than one in four Ukrainian rural farming households has had to reduce or completely stop agricultural production as a result of the war, according to a recent assessment by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).  

The impact has been considerable both in terms of income loss for millions of Ukrainians employed in agriculture but also in terms of food production for the country known as "Europe's breadbasket". 

“Almost 40 percent of the land has been affected by the war - either because they are in a combat zone, because there is mining or there is unexploded ordnance, or they are just simply not accessible by the farmers themselves”, said Pierre Vauthier, Head of FAO Office in Ukraine.

The land most affected happens to also be - historically - the most productive, FAO says.

Some of the farmland is occupied, some has been destroyed, and many farm workers have either fled or been recruited to the frontlines. 

For those who persevere, challenges include reduced income from sales, a lack of access to just about everything they need to farm.... fertilizers, fuel, pesticides, and - increasingly - electricity to power their equipment. 

Farmer Yevhen Nagirnyi, 24, lives in the village Zagirya in the western part of Ukraine, not far from Lviv. 

He grows wheat, corn and vegetables - like potatoes and tomatoes - on a 600-acre farm. However, he's currently cultivating only half of his land. Fuel has doubled in price, he says. Fertilizer has almost tripled - if you can even find it. Meanwhile, his grain is selling for significantly less. 

“The grain price before the war was UAH 8 000 – 9 000 per tonne (USD 216 USD). Now it’s UAH 5 000 – 6 000 per tonne (USD 135), which is way lower than breakeven point. So, we need to hold it in storage in the hope that something will change”, said Yevhen Nagirnyi, Lvivska oblast farmer.

FAO is currently distributing over 6 million tonnes of grain storage space to help farmers continue harvesting and storing their grain so that it is not lost.

The situation is expected to worsen for many of the farmers as winter approaches 

“For the people on the frontline, the situation is very complicated,” said Pierre Vauthier, Head of FAO Office in Ukraine. “For example, the lives of people, due to the frontline and the mining, they cannot access to the grazing area. So, a number of farms, animal livestock productions doesn’t have enough food for the winter for the animals. So, if nothing is done at the moment, we will have a large number of cows going to die, cows, pigs, etc.”.

With millions of tons of grain destined for export still stuck in the country many farmers have not even been paid. 

“This is a situation which is in particular true along the frontline and that situation shows that populations are going for coping mechanism which are quite negative – what we call the ‘crisis coping mechanisms’: reducing expenditure on education, reducing expenditure on houses, which is critical for them for the winter, reducing expenditures on clothing and food”, said Mr. Vauthier. 

Winter wheat seeds have been distributed by FAO to more than one thousand small-scale farmers (2 tonnes/farmer) and some 3,400 rural households in the war-affected areas

“This year we also started to grow corn”, said Yevhen Nagirnyi. “When the war started, it was exactly during the sowing time, but due to the fact that the markets were frozen, we did not have enough running costs, and that is when we learned that Lviv Agrarian Chamber are providing farmers with corn seeds”.

He added that “this actually saved us a lot, and we used the seeds this year because we did not want to leave the fields empty, we wanted to sow at least something, to ensure the food security of our country”.

-ends- 

SHOTLIST

1. WS. Drone shot on church at the countryside
2. WS. Drone shot on a farm
3. WS. Drone shot on crop fields
4. People walking into FAO office in Lviv, Ukraine
5. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) – Pierre Vauthier, Head of FAO Office in Ukraine: “Almost 40% of the land has been affected by the war - either because they are in a combat zone, because there is mining there or there is UXO (unexploded ordnance), or they are just simply not accessible by the farmers themselves.”
6. MS. Farmers harvesting pepper.
7. MS. Farmers walking back to building with pepper.
8. Young farmer talking to workers.
9. Tractor at the farm.
10. Fuel canisters.
11. MS. Young farmer driving by his fields.
12. MS. Young farmer walking out from the car to the field.
13. MS. Young farmer walking on his field.
14. MS. Young farmer taking photo of a plant on his field.
15. WS. Overview of the farm.
16. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) - Yevhen Nagirnyi, Farmer in Lvivska oblast: “The grain price before the war was UAH 8 000 – 9 000 per tonne (USD 216). Now it’s UAH 5 000 – 6 000 per tonne (USD 135), which is way lower than breakeven point. So, we need to hold it in storage in the hope that something will change”.  
17. MS. Travelling shot from car of white grain storage bags.
18. FAO Meeting in the FAO office.
19. Staff having meeting in the office (from another angle).
20. FAO staff having meeting in the office with FAO flag.
21. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) - Pierre Vauthier, Head of FAO Office in Ukraine: “For the people on the front line, the situation is very complicated. For example, the lives of people, due to the frontline and the mining, they cannot access to the grazing area. So, a number of farms, animal livestock productions doesn't have enough food for the winter for the animals. So, if nothing is done at the moment, you have a large number of cows going to die, cows, pigs, etc.”
22. Grain storage, people loading up bags filled with grain
23. SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) - Pierre Vauthier, Head of FAO Office in Ukraine: “This is a situation which is, in particular true, along the front line. And that situation is show what the populations are going for coping mechanism, which are quite negative, what we call the ‘crisis coping mechanism’, reducing expenditures on education, reducing expenditures on housing, which is critical for them from the winter, reducing expenditures on clothing and food.”
24. Young farmer carrying grain bags on a wheelbarrow + unloading.
25. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) - Yevhen Nagirnyi, Farmer in Lvivska oblast: “This year we also started to grow corn. When the war started, it was exactly during the sowing time, but due to the fact that the markets were frozen, we did not have enough running costs, and that is when we learned that Lviv Agrarian Chamber and FAO are providing farmers with corn seeds. This actually saved us a lot, and we used the seeds this year because we did not want to leave the fields empty, we wanted to sow at least something, to ensure the agricultural security of our country”.
26. MS. workers sitting on the bench with a dog at the farm.
27. CU. Young farmer smiling to the camera.