Major Ukrainian farm companies are curbing winter crop plantings after Russia blocked the main Black Sea export route, hitting world food supplies for the next two years.
The options for farmers who made Ukraine a global breadbasket are narrowing as the economics of their business deteriorates. They have limited storage space as this year’s harvest piles up, while an alternative shipping corridor along the Danube is expensive and lacks capacity. Grain ports on the river are also being attacked by Kremlin drones.
Decisions taken over the next few weeks in Ukraine — for wheat, barley and rapeseed — will have repercussions for the 2024 harvest. That will hit both Kyiv’s precious wartime revenues, and global supplies of key food staples.
“With grains it’s a full disaster,” said Roman Slaston, head of the Ukraine agribusiness club. “We definitely might see a decrease of winter wheat and barley and winter rye as well.”
More details by link: bloomberg.com