b"ON THE ROAD TOEUROPEAN INTEGRATIONADVANCING UKRAINE'S SEED INDUSTRY DURING THE RUSSIAN INVASION.BY: MARCEL BRUINSIMPACT OF INVASION AND STORIES OF WHY IT MATTERS SURVIVAL, 2022-2023In June 2022,When the full-scale invasion began, Ukrainian com-Ukraine achievedpanies faced numerous challenges, with safety and EU candidatebusiness continuity as top priorities. According to status. However,Serhiy Tymoshenko, CEO of MAS Seeds Ukraine, to gain fullthe company had developed an emergency action membership,plan in advance, which helped them quickly adapt the country mustto wartime realities. In the early weeks, part of the fulfill numerousworkforce was relocated abroad, while others moved requirements,to western Ukraine. Warehouses were also shifted including significantwestward, as a considerable volume of seed had yet transformationsto be delivered to buyers.in its agriculturalDespite all obstacles, the company's plant in the sector. While mostDnipropetrovsk region, located just 200 km from legal frameworksthe front line, resumed operations by March 2022. regulating qualityMeanwhile, production plans had to be adjustedstandards andland under cultivation for certain crops was reduced the distribution ofdue to occupation. Sunflower field in Ukraine. Source: Grano dOro Ukrainevarious agriculturalOne of the most challenging issues was logistics. products haveRelocating warehouses was complicated by numerousThe loss of 20% of agricultural land in occu-already beencheckpoints in frontline areas, which deterred manypied territories has prompted farmers to rethink adopted, thetransport companies from traveling through thesetheir crop strategies. There is a clear trend toward Europeanregions. The blocked seaports made exports impos- diversification: agricultural enterprises, including Commission'ssible, as about 95% of MAS Seeds' international ship- large agribusinesses, are experimenting with grow-report indicatesments were done by sea. Relatively stable logisticsing non-traditional crops for Ukraine, such as flax, that Ukraine is stillwere restored in August 2023, when the Black Seasorghum, coriander, and peanuts. This shift is driven in the early stagesgrain corridor from Odesa reopened. partly by the search for more profitable alternatives of preparing forIn winter 2022, prolonged power outages sig- to traditional crops like corn, whose profitability has membership. Seednificantly impacted production, increasing the riskdeclined.World Europe of reduced product quality or complete loss of largeThe opening of a new sea corridor has been adove in to find out whatvolumes of seed. In 2023, the company acquired amajor success, as Ukraine supplies a significant por-is the current statepowerful generator, minimizing dependence on elec- tion of grain not only to Europe but also to many of the industry, andtricity and allowing for future contract planning. African countries. Stable deliveries of Ukrainian what lies ahead?grain are crucial to avoiding food crises in these Participants in2024: A YEAR FOR REEVALUATINGregions. In this context, European integration is Ukraine's seedBUSINESS MODELS becoming a powerful tool for stabilizing the situa-market share theirTymoshenko notes that compared to 2022-2023,tion and helping the industry adapt to new realities.perspectives. farmers are much more optimistic about the future,Olga Trofimtseva, an independent expert in thanks to the ability to export grain at relativelythe agricultural sector and former Acting Minister favourable prices. of Agrarian Policy (2019), points out that climate This statement is shared by Siuzana Grygorenko,change has also significantly impacted the Ukrainian Director of the Seed Association of Ukraine. In 2024,agri-market. Its effects in recent years have been so most agribusinesses have adapted and resumed oper- pronounced that many Ukrainian agricultural pro-ations. Grain and seed exports are gradually recov- ducers have had to completely rethink their business ering, aided by the partial reopening of seaports andmodels.alternative logistical routes. However, challengesIn addition to adapting to the invasion, farm-remain: high logistics costs, damaged infrastruc- ers have had to explore new activities and crops that ture, and a labour shortage due to mobilization andpromise greater profitability. For instance, they are migration. increasingly moving towards processing raw mate-16ISEED WORLD EUROPEISEEDWORLD.COM/EUROPE | FEBRUARY 2025"