Ukraine has produced almost 65 million tons of winter grain since sowing in November, according to the Economy Ministry.
Out of this amount, Ukraine has already exported nearly 35 million tons of grain, including 14.5 million tons of wheat, 16 million tons of corn and 4 million tons of barley.
In the 2020-2021 financial year, which starts in November, the country expects to export a total of 45.7 million tons of grain, including 17.5 million tons of wheat and 23.5 million tons of corn. This is slightly less than last year, when Ukraine sold 47 million tons of grain, Deputy Economy Minister Taras Vysotskyi said in a statement on March 29.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Economy expects the country to produce 75 million tons of crops this year, Vysotskyi wrote on Facebook.
The result may change depending on the harvest. In the 2019-2020 financial year, for example, farmers harvested 64 million tons of grain, 11 million tons less than expected after a warm winter and subsequent drought hurt crops.
Ukraine, which accounts for roughly 16% of the global grain exports, sold 57 million tons of grain in 2019, mostly to China and Egypt.
Agriculture remains the most promising sector of the economy and Ukraine’s largest source of exports, generating 9% of the country’s gross domestic product in 2019, according to the U.S. International Trade Administration.
The sector is expected to boom as the law on agricultural land sales will come into effect in July this year, allowing farmers to sell their lands to Ukrainian citizens.
Estimates from the World Bank and the Kyiv School of Economics suggest that lifting the moratorium on land sales could result in 1.9% higher GDP growth per year. Additional investment into agriculture is expected to reach $10 billion.
