Port blockade threatens payment of rent for land shares, — Agrarian Council

As a result of the blockade of the Black Sea ports, farmers are already suffering financial losses, in particular, this may lead to delays in paying rent for land.

This was stated by the deputy chairman of the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Council (AAC) Denys Marchuk.

According to him, in September the export rate was about 46%, in October approximately the same level is expected, that is, about 2.4 million tons of agricultural products.

“At the same time, taking into account the current harvest and transitional balances, Ukraine needs to export at least 6 million tons every month. Due to limited export opportunities, domestic prices for products remain very low. Farmers are already suffering significant financial losses,” Denys Marchuk emphasized.

The AAC emphasized that the consequences of the export crisis go far beyond individual farms. The incomes of share owners, for many of whom rent is an important source of livelihood, as well as tax revenues to budgets, are under threat.

“The export crisis affects not only commodity producers, but also their employees and land owners who lease it out. If the farmer does not receive funds for the products, he will not be able to pay the rent for the shares. There are about 7 million landowners in Ukraine, a significant part of whom lease it out. For many rural residents, land rent is one of the main sources of income. The absence of these payments will also mean losses of tax revenues to the budget, in particular personal income tax and military levy. Therefore, the consequences of the inability to fully export products across the Black Sea are much more extensive than the financial problems of agricultural enterprises,” the deputy head of the Agrarian Council emphasized.

An additional challenge is financing the next sowing campaign. According to Denys Marchuk, the sowing of winter crops has been completed only approximately 70% of the planned amount, although given the weather conditions, the work should already be completed.

At the same time, farmers will need more than UAH 300 billion to conduct the spring sowing campaign in 2027. In the absence of sufficient export earnings and with loan repayments approaching, some farms may find themselves on the verge of default. This, in turn, creates the risk of thousands of agricultural enterprises shutting down.

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