Despite the fact that the russian occupiers almost completely destroyed the cultivation of traditional vegetables in the southern region of the country, including the undermining of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station dam, the destruction of irrigation systems, modern vegetable storages, and mining of fields, Ukrainian farmers were able to incredibly quickly establish cultivation in other regions of the country, the Committee on Agrarian and Land Policy reports.
Industry experts note that this is absolutely unprecedented – in just one year, amid the ongoing war, labour and specialist shortages, to restore cultivation to almost pre-war levels in regions that do not have optimal conditions for this.
For example, according to the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club, vegetable and potato storage facilities with a capacity of about 150,000 tonnes have been destroyed since the beginning of the war. At the same time, in 2023, capacities of about 20,000 tonnes were built, of which 70% were for storing onions, and 15% each for carrots and potatoes. As of February 2024, orders have already been received for the construction of storage facilities for more than 25 thousand tonnes, which will be used mainly for onions.
Growing vegetables and storing them properly is a very technologically complex process that requires in-depth knowledge of agronomy and significant investments.
Therefore, in 2024, approaches to growing vegetables will be more balanced, with infrastructure development and storage of the grown products becoming more important.
In 2024, Ukrainian farmers are expected to increase the construction of storage facilities for vegetables and potatoes with a capacity of about 40 thousand tonnes.