Ukraine: {Ukraїna}

Recent update: Joint Press Statement on Russia's aggression of Ukraine

Ukraine is the world’s leading exporter of barley and the most important producer of sunflower oil

Agriculture as Ukraine’s economic backbone

Agriculture is one of the strategically important sectors in Ukraine, accounting for 8.2% of the GDP and 14.5% of total goods exports in 2010. It absorbs approximately 15.8% of the total employment. Wheat is the single most important crop in terms of arable land, occupying 20.8% of the total area and accounting for 46.0% of the total output of cereals by volume in 2009. Other important crops in terms of cultivated area are barley, sunflower seed, maize, potatoes, rapeseed and soybeans.

Room for Improvement

Due to an agri-food industry with a very fragmented structure and fraught with small producers, it is essential to facilitate constant innovation to foster internationalization and competitiveness. Another problem is that production is very diverse and the degree of utilization of agricultural area of the country is very low.

In 2023, EIT Food organises the following activities in Ukraine:

• GoToBusiness workshops - the activity will provide training, mentoring, and other forms of support to entrepreneurs and innovators in Ukraine who wish to develop their business concepts and set up new startups, particularly in the agrifood sector, helping them to develop the skills and knowledge necessary to succeed in their endeavours. The subcontractors to deliver the activity are Consortium LLC “CORPORATE ACCELERATORS” (Radar Tech) and Cyberinnovate LLC.
• Challenge Labs - project that aims to tackle significant issues in the Ukrainian agri-food sector by organizing creative workshops and innovation activities. In 2023 EIT Food collaborates with INSCIENCE NGO, CYBERINNOVATE, and CIVITTA LLCs to unite diverse participants in developing fresh solutions, promoting entrepreneurship and sustainability amidst challenges posed by an ongoing war, energy shortages, and economic uncertainty.
• EWA (Empowering Women in Agrifood) - This programme offers training, mentoring, business coaching, and networking opportunities for women entrepreneurs in the agrifood sector. Public organisation "Institute of Partnership and Sustainable Development" is the organiser of the EWA (Empowering Women in Agrifood) program in Ukraine. More information is available at EWA (wmnpower.org)
• EIT Food Startup Awareness Event - The main goal of the events will be to introduce EIT Food programs and activities to the local agrifood and innovation ecosystem and scout for potential participants of EIT Food entrepreneurship programmes. The events will also aim to bring together the members of the local agrifood ecosystem and initiate the discussion about the current state and challenges of the ecosystem in relation to innovation and entrepreneurship. The subcontractor to deliver the activity is LLC “CORPORATE ACCELERATORS” Radar Tech.
• The entrepreneur's guide for beginners. The E-learning course focuses on basic business concepts and business models, funding and investment for a start-up, agricultural technologies: trends, challenges and opportunities. It leads the students through the basic process of creating a start-up from the scratch. Startup Manual in Ukrainian
• Startup Manual in Ukrainian - Over 40 modules of practical advice for agrifood entrepreneurs covering everything from finance to funding, sustainability to supply chain. Available HERE