Pavlo Koval’s comment to Qatari television: How the war in Ukraine may lead to worldwide food crisis

Oil depots and food warehouses are burning in Ukraine.

The range is increasingly shrinking and the shelves of supermarkets empty globally.

The consequences of the Russian war in Ukraine affect not only Ukrainians but also people around the world.

Ukraine and Russia produce a total of 53% of the world's sunflower oil and seeds and 27% of wheat.

To put that into perspective, if current supplies of sunflower oil run out, Belgium will run out of the ability to make french fries.

If wheat supplies run low Lebanon will run out of bread along with Egypt and Tunisia.

In total, 27 African countries could face wheat shortages.

As Russia is under tough sanctions, food exports are severely restricted, while the war also halts Ukrainian exports.  Ukrainian businesses are under pressure due to losses and uncertainty due to hostilities.

"There are also crimes of Russia against the Ukrainian economy, in particular against agriculture.

Absolutely different branches of agriculture are suffering, ”General Director of UAC Pavlo Koval commented the situation in Ukraine to Qatar's Al Jazeera television.

Thus, facts of theft and damage to agricultural machinery, shooting of goats, sheep and ostriches are known. It is also worth mentioning the mass deaths of chickens due to the actions of the occupiers at the Chornobaivka Poultry Farm in the Kherson region, which belongs to the agricultural holding "Ukrlandfarming".

However, according to Pavlo Koval, the biggest problem facing Ukrainian farmers is the difficulty of conducting a timely sowing campaign.

"After all, about 82,500 square kilometers of Ukrainian land have been mined.

This means that we need a lot of time to demine these lands, "Pavlo Koval concluded.

Then, Qatari correspondent Imran Khan visited TAS Agro, a representative of large agribusiness in Ukraine, in the village of Medvin, Kyiv region.

The director of the enterprise said that certain economic problems are possible if the war doesn’t end soon, but the Ukrainian government and enterprises are taking a number of measures to prevent negative consequences .

"Everything is very dynamic, the situation is constantly changing.

But we have created so-called crisis teams and are actively preparing for the sowing that is about to begin.

The war destroyed agribusiness in Eastern Ukraine, and only in the fields in Southern and Western Ukraine we can work more or less calmly, "Dmytro Svoyak commented the situation.

But even in this case, the lack of resources and labor can hinder sowing.

In July, the wheat fields will be ready for harvest, which is an important part of Ukraine's economy.

However will Ukrainian farmers be able to get this wheat onto a boat and out to international markets given the situation.

Russia has blocked ports on the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.

About 13.5 million tons of wheat and 16 million tons of corn are sitting in the docks.

Combined with the war and the sanctions against Russia that's led to food prices rising everywhere.

And the longer this war goes on, the higher they’ll get.

Watch it on YouTube.

IC UAC according to Al Jazeera