In a relatively short period of time, Ukrainian companies have managed to establish an international supply chain and are already delivering their products to more than 40 countries around the world. Main countries of destination for Ukrainian organic food products are the Netherlands, the US, Germany, Lithuania, Austria, the United Kingdom, Poland, Canada, Italy and Switzerland. Ukrainian organic producers already export 80+ types of products: cereals (corn, wheat and barley), oilseeds, soybeans, sunflower oil, fruits and berries, vegetables, mushrooms, nuts, greens and ketchup, juices, flour, honey and others.

These indicators are only growing and soon Ukraine can lay claim to one of the most competitive players in the organic food market in the world. For example, the export of organic products from Ukraine in 2020 increased by 7.9% in monetary terms compared to 2019. And it is worth replacing that the growth was observed during the pandemic and lockdowns. While other sectors in Ukraine saw significant declines, organic exports increased. At the end of 2020, Ukraine ranked 4th place among the largest exporting countries of organic products to the EU.

What are the main advantages of working with Ukraine and why how the local Ukrainian producers of organic products managed to take the leading positions in Europe so quickly?

Most fertile soil in Europe: 33% of the world’s black soil is in Ukraine. Ukrainian agriculture land is 1.16 the territory of Germany;

Ready for business: UA exporters are trusted partners for already about 230 importing companies from Europe, North America and Asia;

EU neighbour: easy and fast logistics. Direct flights to all European capitals within 2-3 hours. UTC+2 time zone;

Trade openness: 18 free trade agreements including with the EU, EFTA, UK, Canada and Israel;

High quality: tasty products of superb quality confirmed by the EU and other organic standards;

Easy and fast logistics: shipment by land, sea and air. Fast developing warehousing infrastructure.

In 2021, Ukrainian Government adopted the National Economic Strategy until 2030 which officially set a target for increase in organic agricultural land in Ukraine. It is planned that by 2030 Ukrainian organic land will reach 3% of the total area of agricultural lands of Ukraine (or near 1.3 million hectares). Another goal of the Strategy is to increase exports of organic products to 1 billion USD by 2030. In connection with the ambitious goals and objectives to significantly increase the volume of exports of organic products a large-scale international B2B event (Ukrainian Organic Export Days) will take place. The purpose of this event is to once again declare to the world that Ukraine is a reliable partner in the international arena, with whom one can and should cooperate, as well as expand the network of contacts and find new partners.

30 certified Ukrainian producers of fresh / frozen fruits and berries, vegetables, cereals, legumes, herbs and snacks were carefully selected to participate in the event. The list of participants includes both fairly large market operators (Ukroliya, Avis, Arnica) and small companies (Primfood, Organic Original, Liqberry). The main advantage of UOED is that, within the framework of one event, importers will be able to meet with manufacturers of different products, manufacturers who have an established reputation and have been carefully selected by governmental institution in cooperation with core association. It is also worth noting that participants from the Ukrainian side have also been added to the ITC Sustainability Map, on which potential buyers can verify each company and also check the presence of a valid organic product manufacturer's certificate. The majority of organic operators in Ukraine are certified according to the EU organic standard. In addition, Ukrainian organic operators are often certified according to the US National Organic Program (NOP) and/or Canada Organic Regime (COR), Bio Suisse (Switzerland), Naturland and Bioland (Germany), JAS (Japan), and KRAV (Sweden).

 Within the framework of the designated event, foreign guests will also have the opportunity to join conferences with top Ukrainian speakers, government and business representatives. It should be noted that the event will be held online on the B2Match platform and is free for everyone. Don't miss the opportunity to get to know Ukraine better.

Hurry up to register and start networking with the best Ukrainian producers and experts in the organic sector!

“Ukrainian Organic Export Days” is implemented by the State Institution “Entrepreneurship and Export Promotion Office of Ukraine” and the Ukrainian Berries Association.

 This publication has been produced with the support of Switzerland within the framework of the Swiss-Ukrainian Program “Higher Value Added Trade from the Organic and Dairy Sector in Ukraine” implemented by the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL, Switzerland) in partnership with SAFOSO AG (Switzerland). The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SECO, FiBL, SAFOSO AG. 

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