Today, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), through the Agriculture Resilience Initiative - Ukraine (AGRI-Ukraine) announced a new collaboration with Corteva Agriscience to help meet Ukrainian farmers’ immediate and long-term needs for sunflower and corn seeds, crop protection, and financing.
Corteva Agriscience, which announced its decision to withdraw from Russia following the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine, is increasing its production of hybrid corn and sunflower seeds in the region by 30 percent over the next five years to ensure a stable supply of seeds for Ukrainian farmers. Corteva is also increasing Ukrainian farmers’ access to the latest crop protection technologies, agronomic support, and financing tools – all necessary components for delivering a high-yielding, profitable harvest beneficial to Ukraine’s economy and to global food supplies.
USAID’s collaboration with Corteva builds on the Agency’s work under AGRI-Ukraine, which has already provided more than 13,728 Ukrainian farmers with seeds, fertilizers, crop protection, access to finance, and other assistance, in total supporting approximately 29 percent of the country’s registered agriculture enterprises.
Prior to Russia’s brutal war on Ukraine, agriculture was the bedrock of the Ukrainian economy, accounting for nearly 20 percent of Ukraine’s GDP, employing 20 percent of the workforce, and generating more than 40 percent of total export revenues. Russia’s war has severely impacted global food supplies, reducing Ukraine’s production of barley, corn, sunflower seed, and wheat by 30 to 40 percent. Ukraine continues to face limited access to critical inputs like seeds, fertilizer, financing, and fuel. The costs to Ukrainian farmers of planting, irrigating, fertilizing, harvesting, and transporting crops have all risen substantially, decreasing their primary source of income and jeopardizing their ability to plant for future seasons. Agricultural financing is limited and insufficient to meet farmers’ rising demands. The Russian Federation’s brinkmanship around the Black Sea Grain Initiative exacerbates these challenges.
AGRI-Ukraine supports Ukraine’s embattled economy and helps alleviate the global food security crisis worsened by Russia’s war on Ukraine by increasing Ukraine’s capacity to produce, store, and export grain to the world. AGRI-Ukraine is providing critical agricultural supplies, improving export rail logistics and efficiency, increasing farmers’ access to finance, and supporting storage, drying, and processing needs. USAID contributed an initial $100 million to AGRI-Ukraine and seeks to leverage an additional $150 million, including from fellow donors, the private sector, and foundations, for an overall investment target of $250 million. Under the AGRI-Ukraine initiative, Corteva joins Bayer, Grain Alliance, Kernel, and Nibulon, Maersk, the World Bank, and Ukraine’s Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food in collaboration with USAID to support Ukraine’s agriculture sector.
For more information on AGRI-Ukraine and how to partner with USAID to support Ukraine’s agriculture sector, visit the AGRI-Ukraine webpage: www.usaid.gov/ukraine/