Ukraine and Germany are discussing support for agricultural exports following the blockade of ports

Ukraine and Germany discussed possible mechanisms to support Ukrainian agricultural exports amid the disruption of traditional maritime routes. Ukraine’s Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Taras Vysotsky and Germany’s Agriculture Minister Alois Rainer focused on alternative logistics and ways to compensate for their higher costs.

Ukraine expects to harvest about 80 mln tons of grains and oilseeds in 2026, of which around 60 mln tons will need to be exported. However, existing alternative logistics routes currently have the capacity to handle only about 30 mln tons and cannot fully replace maritime exports.

The high cost of alternative logistics remains a key challenge. According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Agrarian Policy, shipments via these routes cost approximately €50/t more, making exports of some agricultural products unprofitable for Ukrainian farmers. Ukraine is proposing that importing countries jointly develop mechanisms to compensate for the additional logistics costs and maintain supplies to international markets.

Storage of the new crop until full-scale maritime exports can be restored is another challenge. Preliminary estimates indicate that Ukraine needs temporary storage capacity for around 10 mln tons of agricultural products. Kyiv has already appealed to international partners, including EU member states, for assistance.

Germany said it would consider options to support Ukrainian agricultural exports amid systematic Russian attacks on port infrastructure. The two sides agreed to continue consultations on trade, logistics and exports, with another bilateral meeting planned for September during the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council (AGRIFISH) meeting.

Tags: support, Germany, blocking ports, agricultural, Ukraine, grain, Oilseed, oilseeds