The sowing campaign in Ukraine is slowing down due to a lack of qualified farmers

The spring sowing campaign in Ukraine in a number of regions revealed a lack of personnel to go into the fields. According to the deputy chairman of the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Council, Denys Marchuk, the lack of personnel is related to mass mobilization. It affected many people living in agricultural areas.

On this occasion, Denys Marchuk noted that the reservation system in the agricultural sector exists, but it needs significant improvement. In particular, the booking process currently takes 1-2 months, making it inefficient. Currently, an electronic reservation project has been developed in Ukraine, which should significantly speed up the process and is expected to be operational in the near future.

It should be noted that currently, despite personnel problems and other challenges of martial law, all regions of Ukraine have started sowing spring crops. According to the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food, 476.7 thousand hectares of grain and leguminous crops have already been sown (68.3 thousand hectares of wheat, 291.5 thousand hectares of barley, 81.8 thousand hectares of peas and 28.7 thousand ha of oats). The farmers of Odesa region (7 thousand hectares of wheat, 41.5 thousand hectares of barley, 28.4 thousand hectares of peas and 1.5 thousand hectares of oats), Ternopil region (14.4 thousand hectares of wheat, 32 ,2 thousand ha of barley, 3.1 thousand ha of peas and 1.1 thousand ha of oats) and Poltava Oblast (6.4 thousand ha of wheat, 56.2 thousand ha of barley, 4.7 thousand ha of peas and 2.3 thousand ha of oats). Next in the list of leaders are Khmelnytskyi (7.2 thousand ha of wheat, 23.7 thousand ha of barley, 0.8 thousand ha of peas and 0.5 thousand ha of oats), Vinnytsia (5.9 thousand ha of wheat, 27.1 thousand ha of barley, 4.4 thousand ha of peas and 0.2 thousand ha of oats) and Mykolaiv Oblast (2.2 thousand ha of wheat, 33.4 thousand ha of barley, 17.6 thousand ha of peas) and 0.5 thousand ha of oats). At the same time, the Poltava region is also leading in terms of sugar beet crops (10.2 thousand ha have already been sown).

However, according to forecasts of specialists of the Ukrainian Grain Association, the current year's harvest is expected at the level of 76.1 million tons of grain and oilseeds. This indicator is 6.5 million tons or 8% less than in 2023, when 82.6 million tons were collected. This forecast is based on average weather conditions over the past 5 years. Experts note that improvement or deterioration of weather conditions in the spring and summer may make adjustments.

In general, among the main reasons for the expected decrease in the harvest are the reduction of cultivated areas (mainly under grain crops), unfavorable price conditions on the world market, as well as expensive export logistics. As for export, according to UAС's estimate, it may amount to about 43.7 million tons in the new marketing season of 2024/2025. This indicator is compared with the forecast for the current marketing year, when the export of grain and oilseeds may reach 53.1 million tons. But its achievement is possible only under the condition of the smooth operation of the Ukrainian maritime corridor and the Danube route.