The harvest in Ukraine is good and there is plenty of grain, but the country can hardly export it. Heavy Russian attacks have almost blocked the major Black Sea ports, and shipping near Odessa has come to a standstill. ARD report.
For farmers in Ukraine, danger has long become part of their daily lives. When an air raid warning sounds, many do not stop their work, because there is almost nowhere to hide in the fields.
„Of course it is scary. But what shelter is there in the fields? That's why we just keep working even with sirens wailing," tractor driver Oleksandr Naku told ARD. He has been working in agriculture for 42 years and continues to do so - now even as a pensioner. Many young men are at the front, while others have fled abroad. Due to the lack of labor, many older farmers are helping out.
Good harvest, falling prices
This year's harvest turned out to be good. But this is precisely what is becoming a problem for farmer Yevgeny Timofeev. About 600 tons of wheat are stored on his farm alone. They are also added to barley, peas and sunflowers. Together with his father, the 30-year-old man manages about 400 hectares of land.
At the moment, they hope to sell at least enough to cover current expenses. “We are selling only a small part to pay the rent and fuel. So that we can at least somehow work. We can't sell more because the prices are low," Yevgeny told ARD.
He hopes to sell the bulk of his production at better prices in time. In order to have somewhere to store it, they have built additional warehouses on his farm. But not every farmer has such an opportunity.
The ports are open, but ships are not arriving
The reason for the drop in prices lies primarily in the export routes. Ukraine is among the largest grain exporters in the world, and its large Black Sea ports are crucial for exports. But after massive Russian attacks on ships and port facilities, shipping in the ports near Odessa has almost stopped. The consequences for Ukraine are serious, as grain exports were key to the country’s economic stability during the war and a major source of food for its agricultural sector.
The port of Odessa is now rarely visited, says Dmytro Barinov, chairman of the Ukrainian Ports Association. He describes the situation as a de facto blockade: “Ship owners, captains and crew members are afraid for their lives. The question now is whether they will survive or be killed by Russian drones or missiles.”
What cannot be exported through the major Black Sea ports is increasingly being directed to the Danube. The ports of Ismail and Reni have become important alternative routes. But they too are under Russian attack. Added to this are the low water levels, which further limit shipping.
The Sulina Canal in particular, which passes through Romanian territory and leads to the Danube River, is a "needle's eye". According to Barinov, only smaller cargo ships with a carrying capacity of up to 7,000 tons can enter it. Large ocean-going ships cannot use this route.
The comparison by the port association shows how big the difference is: a ship with 100,000 tons of cargo can be loaded in a Black Sea port in a few days. To transport the same amount by road, about 5,000 trucks would be needed, ARD points out.
Attacks also against trucks
In front of Ismail, trucks have formed a kilometer-long queue. Many of them are loaded to the brim with grain. One of the drivers is Viktor. He is transporting 28 tons from central Ukraine and has been waiting for three days to unload at the port. His colleagues have been waiting for weeks, he adds.
"We are waiting for them to let us into the port and for there to be no air raid. There are so many raids blocking the work. Everyone is waiting, no one knows what is going on. Things are going very slowly," Viktor describes the situation.
When there is an air raid, work in the ports is interrupted and vehicles have to leave the facilities. A few days ago, several trucks loaded with grain were hit by Russian drones.
Viktor knows that the journey and the waiting are dangerous. “Everyone is afraid. But we are used to it,“ he says. When the attacks start, the drivers get out of the trucks and walk away from them. “Because our families are waiting for us at home".
New harvest increases pressure
Despite the danger, shipments must continue. With the new corn harvest expected this fall, the situation could worsen even further. The port association warns that there may be a lack of additional storage capacity, especially in October and November.
As long as the most important export route via the Black Sea remains blocked, the pressure on farmers will increase. And with each new harvest, the amount of grain that has to find its way out of the country increases.
Meanwhile, prices for farmers continue to fall - while grain on the world market becomes more expensive, the German public media also writes.