Soybean acreage in Ukraine will increase in 2024, but will not reach a record

According to the forecasts of the Danube Soybean Association, soybean acreage in Ukraine may increase to a maximum of 2 million hectares. Last year, this figure was the highest in the last five years – at 1.82 million hectares. And thanks to favorable weather conditions, farmers received an average yield of 2.65 t/ha and harvested 4.82 million tons. For comparison: In 2015, when soybeans were planted on the largest area in the history of Ukraine – 2.1 million hectares, the gross harvest amounted to 3.76 million tons with an average yield of 1.8 t/ha.

This was reported by Mykola Bykov, agronomy consultant of the Danube Soybean Association, agronomy advisor, in his column in The Ukrainian Farmer magazine.

According to him, due to the probable increase in soybean acreage, there may be fears that the price of soybeans will fall due to the increase in production. However, it is extremely difficult to predict this, because, firstly, it is impossible to predict whether weather conditions will contribute to a significant increase in gross soybean production. Secondly, the price of soybeans also depends on the volume of its production in Brazil and the United States.

“Of course, I am always in favor of pulses in the crop rotation, as they are good predecessors for the following crops and do not deplete the soil, however, I consider diversification of risks to be the best option, i.e., the formation of crop rotation without skewing towards any one crop only because the price for it has increased this year,” said Mykola Bykov.

According to the expert, under certain conditions, soybeans can yield more than 2.5 t/ha without basic fertilizers. Earlier, Mykola Bykov noted that the increase in soybean acreage is likely to be achieved only by the Right Bank.

Tags: Ukraine, soybean, sown area