From Ukraine: Rebuilding the farm from the rubble

Glacier FarmMedia – One and a half years have passed since the invasion of Russian troops into Ukraine.

Read Also

Repurposing food waste can offer benefits to agri-food sector

The concepts of reducing food loss and finding ways to repurpose waste streams into viable, useful products are gaining traction…

The farm of Hryhoriy Tkachenko came under attack in the first days of the war. During the three weeks of occupation, the farm was so badly damaged that he still cannot restore everything. It was the near-total destruction of 20 years of work.

He and his wife began their farm on a few acres of land they received from the state when the Soviet-era collective farms were wound down. Today, they cultivate more than 4,000 acres. Their business developed quickly — until the war began.

“We grew many different agricultural crops: wheat, sunflower, soy, canola, corn, barley, oats, millet and potatoes,” said Tkachenko.

“We had a garden, several acres of raspberries and strawberries. There is also a large modern dairy farm where we produced milk of the highest quality. Everything was fine and we could finally enjoy the results of the work of our hands. I couldn’t even imagine that all our buildings would be destroyed.”

The farm is in northern Ukraine, in the Chernihiv region. When Russian troops entered Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, bloody battles began in this area. There were few Ukrainian troops there, so many civilians volunteered to defend the country.

“On March 9, the last unequal battle took place and our defenders were forced to retreat,” Tkachenko said.

“The occupiers entered our village and stayed here until March 30. During these three weeks, they managed to wreak so much havoc that we still cannot recover.”

After liberation of the village, state authorities assessed the damaged property on Tkachenko’s farm. Without adding in lost inventory — the dead cows, burned grain and seeds, as well as fertilizers and other inputs — the damage to farm infrastructure amounted to approximately US$750,000.

“We also lost 158 heads of cattle, half of the herd. But out of 172 dairy cows, 108 died… Russians barbecued our cows,” said Tkachenko.

“In addition, we had a modern milking parlour. This equipment was destroyed by a direct hit from a rocket. Our pride in the production of extra-class milk simply ceased to exist.”

The occupiers also caused trouble in the village where the farm is located. In particular, they destroyed a church, which the farmer and his compatriots are now trying to rebuild.

On the farm itself, 17 buildings were destroyed or damaged, as well as a lot of farm equipment.

“We are directing our main efforts today to help the Ukrainian army. My son, who fought in the east of Ukraine, also became a soldier,” he said.

It was difficult to work normally in fields. Explosive objects were everywhere. Villagers traveled with sappers and looked for mines and shells. Thanks to this, it was possible to sow 98 per cent of the land.

At the same time, specialists were demining houses because the retreating Russians left deadly “surprises” for civilians. Even today, in this area, people are forbidden to go into the forest, because there may be traps with explosives.

“The occupation set our economy back several years in development,” Tkachenko said, “After all, it takes at least three years to grow a cow. We milked 7,000 litres of milk per year from each animal. And it was the best milk. Now we have to slowly revive it all.”

He managed to repair the milking parlour and restore the computer equipment. He also bought 20 cattle with borrowed money. Now almost everything has to be done on credit, though that’s not easy in a war-torn country.

“Banks are very reluctant to give us credit, because we are still in the risk zone,” said Tkachenko. “We are met only by some old partners who give us fertilizers and pesticides in exchange for grain. If it weren’t for them, I don’t know what we would do.”

Although a good harvest of almost all crops is expected in Ukraine this year, there was little rain near his farm, so the wheat harvest was low.

“We harvested only 4.2 tonnes of grain per hectare. This is a very low yield,” he said.

The situation would be better if he got a good price for grain. But because the Russians are blocking sea ports, the price of grain is constantly decreasing.

“For example, I agreed in the morning that I will sell one tonne of wheat for 4,500 hryvnias (C$166),” Tkachenko said. “However, they called me in the evening and said ‘sorry, we can only buy 4,200 hryvnias each.’ That is, the harvest from one hectare of wheat will pay me 16,800 hryvnias — but my expenses amounted to 20,000 hryvnias .”

The farm is several hundred miles from the point of sale, incurring additional costs, and not all carriers are ready to do it.

There is no shortage of work on the farm. It was necessary to do everything at once: bury the dead cows, repair the buildings, repair the grain dryer, find agricultural machinery.

“In particular, I had to harvest corn all winter in order to sell it for next to nothing,” Tkachenko said.

He’s now hoping that non-traditional crops for the area, oats and millet that are cheaper to produce, will help pay debts. He also expects a good potato harvest but low prices. He hopes sunflower prices will be good.

Tkachenko also said he’s grateful for the agronomists of some companies that sell inputs like fertilizer. They were unafraid to come to his farm and help him grow crops, and without them, the farm wouldn’t have seen good results.

But despite these hardships, Tkachenko is thinking of the future.

“The only way out that I see today is to diversify our production,” he said. “We don’t just want to milk cows, but we want to make finished products from milk to get additional profit. We will also be engaged in meat production.

“We will also produce fuel briquettes and sell them. Somehow, we will develop in this way, since today it is impossible to sell grain at a normal price.”

The farm has also been aided by an informal network of nearby farmers who are neighbours and friends. They have banded together to help each other through challenging times.

“Everything will be fine and I’m sure of it,” Tkachenko said. “Yes, it is very difficult for us now, but I have no doubt that we will revive our farm and normal life in the region.”

As for me, I communicate with many Ukrainian farmers, many of whom are in similar circumstances. None of them think about giving up and getting rid of their business. I consider this a great miracle and cannot imagine how these people find the strength and opportunities to revive their farms under such difficult conditions.

But they are full of optimism, which in turn fuels optimism in me.

– This article was originally published at the Manitoba Co-operator.