Ministry of Agrarian Policy of Ukraine with NASA Harvest made an assessment of wheat production in the temporarily occupied territories for 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 MY

NASA Harvest (NASA’s Global Food Security and Agriculture Consortium), with the support of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine, has estimated winter wheat production. The data showed a further reduction in the scale of agricultural activity and agricultural production potential in the occupied territories of Ukraine.

In the current 2023/2024 marketing season, the acreage under winter wheat in the occupied territories of Ukraine decreased by almost 10%. At the same time, the average yield of winter wheat is more than 20% lower than the yields obtained by farmers in the free territories of independent Ukraine.

“The NASA Harvest project estimates the production of key grains and oilseeds in both government-controlled and temporarily occupied territories using satellite-based methods. The study helps us understand the real situation with crops and the overall state of production in the temporarily occupied territories. This is an important tool that allows us to assess the nature and scale of agricultural activities under occupation,” commented Taras Vysotskyi, First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food.

Winter wheat production in 2023/2024 marketing year is estimated as follows:

Estimates of winter wheat production in 2023/2024 MY

Last season, the total area under winter wheat crops was 7.2 mln ha, of which 1.8 mln ha were located in the temporarily occupied territories (occupation borders as of August 2022). The winter wheat yield in the occupied territories was 16% lower than in the free territories. In addition, 8% of winter wheat crops were not harvested.

Estimates of winter wheat production in 2022/2023 MY

“Our satellite estimates are closely aligned with the Ministry of Agrarian Policy’s estimates for the government-controlled territory, and this gives us confidence in the accuracy of our estimates for the temporarily occupied territory. Comparing 2023 with 2022, we see a significant decrease in the area under crops in the occupied territories, accompanied by a noticeable increase in abandoned arable land. While this season’s good weather conditions contributed to higher yields, our analysis also revealed significant areas of farmland in poor condition and abandonment, concentrated along the frontline,” commented Inbal Becker-Reshef, Director of NASA Harvest.

Tags: crop forecast, war, Ukraine, grain, wheat