Ukraine: A Fertile Breadbasket in a Fragile Location

The imperiled former Soviet republic was considered the breadbasket of the USSR and is now the breadbasket of Europe and beyond

Ukraine is the size of New Mexico and Arizona combined with a population of roughly 42 million. Like many of the borders of eastern European nations, Ukraine’s territory has been affected by two world wars and Soviet regional imperialism. The Crimea peninsula region (“added in 1954” area) was annexed by Russia in 2014. (Image: WikiMedia Commons).

Europe, generally free from significant internal conflict threats since the end of the Cold War in 1991, is facing a genuine crisis in Ukraine. Roughly 150,000 Russian troops are massed along Ukraine’s border with Russia and also in Belarus. War or peace, Ukraine is at the center of a genuine crisis for the United States, Europe and Russia.

Like many places, Ukraine’s history has been affected by shifting borders, continental imperialism and important natural resources that have guided the social, economic and cultural direction of the nation. For Ukraine, rich farmland has made the nation of 42 million an important agriculture resource and a critical neighbor in eastern Europe. Roughly 70% of Ukraine territory is farmland.

Ukraine is one of the world’s largest grain exporters. It has roughly 42 million hectares of farmland. (Image: P. Rytova on Unsplash).

Drought, ethnic animosity and Moscow-led communist political doctrine led to The Great Famine (locally called Holodomor) in the Soviet Union in 1932–33. In this map of the era, area “B” of the Soviet Union was heavily affected by the famine, including Ukraine. The calamity may have led to the deaths of seven to ten million Soviet citizens including nearly four million ethnic Ukrainians. (Image: WikiMedia/CC).

Some Ukraine agriculture facts worth noting during this period of geo-political crisis in Europe and food price inflation:

• As the Soviet Union collapsed, Ukraine declared its independence in August 1991. As part of the move away from a Soviet command-style economy, the government began a process of distributing agricultural land to local Ukrainian farmers. These farmers could only farm the land themselves and the land could not be used for bank loan collateral.
• In 2020, the Ukraine parliament passed legislation that ended a moratorium on the sale of farmland; citizens could buy up to 100 hectares. In 2024, legislation will allow Ukraine agribusinesses to participate in auctions of larger parcels of farmland. Loosening land ownership regulations is crucial for stimulating significant investment in the vital agriculture sector.
• Ukraine ranks #1 in sunflower seed oil exports and is one of the top six exporters of wheat and corn.
• Ukrainian commodity exports are destined for nations across Europe and the globe including Egypt, Indonesia, Turkey and Tunisia.
• Ukraine has become a corn exporting powerhouse over the past decade. The nation produced 42 million tons of corn in 2021. The corn acreage in Ukraine is about the same as the state of Iowa’s corn acreage.

Ukraine’s primary wheat producing regions are in the east, south and center, bordering the Russia-annexed Crimea (“Krym”) region and the two eastern breakaway regions of Luhansk and Donetsk. (Image: US Dept of Agriculture FAS).

Ukraine’s primary soybean producing regions are in the north and center. The nation’s reputation as a breadbasket is a deserved designation. (Image: US Dept of Agriculture FAS).

However the crisis is resolved in the coming days, weeks and months, Ukraine will remain a breadbasket and a geopolitical flashpoint as climate change increases food insecurity challenges and commodity price inflation remains a global problem.