Ukraine completes the harvesting of early cereals and accelerates the pace of export of the new crop

Despite Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine, domestic farmers continue to harvest crops, and traders intensify exports through Black Sea ports, which improves purchase prices and creates conditions for producers to plant for the 2023 harvest.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, as of August 18, 23.4 million tons of grain and leguminous crops were threshed in Ukraine from 6.1 million hectares or 55% of the planned area with an average yield of 3.82 tons/ha, in particular:

• 17.4 million tons of wheat from 4.3 million hectares (91% of the area) with a yield of 4.04 tons/ha,
• 5.3 million tons of barley from 1.5 million hectares (96% of the area) with a yield of 3.45 tons/ha,
• 243.7 thousand tons of peas from 106.8 thousand hectares (97% of the area) with a yield of 2.26 tons/ha,
• 7.7 thousand tons of millet from 3.2 thousand hectares (7%) with a yield of 2.39 tons/ha.

In addition, 3.1 million tons of winter rape were threshed from 1.077 million hectares or 98% of the area with a yield of 2.84 tons/ha.

Mykolayiv Oblast, where 86% of the area has been threshed, Odesa Oblast (85%), Volyn Oblast and Dnipropetrovsk Oblast (70% each) and Kirovohrad Oblast (60%) are the leaders in harvesting rates.

In 2022/23 MR, as of August 19, Ukraine exported 2.988 million tons of grain and leguminous crops, which is twice as much as the 6.177 million tons exported during this period last year.

Thus, compared to the previous season, exports decreased:

• wheat – from 2.931 million tons to 783 thousand tons,
• barley – from 2.07 million tons to 257 thousand tons,
• rye – up to 0.1 thousand tons,
• wheat flour – from 18.7 to 6.4 thousand tons.

At the same time, corn exports increased from 1.153 to 1.935 million tons.

Although the export of grain from the Black Sea ports is slower than we would like, traders are actively exporting last year’s stocks, and in the near future they plan to resume the purchase of new crop grain at the ports.

Tags: Ukraine, export, grain, prices, harvesting