Ukraine has proposed to the United Nations that it host a global grain reserve to avoid price fluctuations.
The Ukrainian Agriculture Minister announced the move on August 4.
“Our country is ready to contribute 10-12 million tons of grain to such a reserve. We are also prepared to ensure high-quality storage and make grain interventions if the U.N. passes relevant resolutions,” Nikolai Prisyazhnyuk said during a working visit to Ternopol region in Ukraine's west.
According to domestic experts, Ukraine may reach annual grain production of around 80 million tons within the coming six years, more than half of which could be exported.
According to Mr. Prisyazhnyuk, Ukraine has already harvested 30.5 million tons of early crops, or by eight million tons more than in early August of 2010. “And crops on about one million hectares are yet to be harvested. Food grain of high quality accounts for up to 60 per cent of the entire harvest,” he said. In his words, such growth rates in the agrarian sector make it possible for Ukraine to position itself as a leader on the global grain market.
According to forecasts, early cereals and grain legumes will be harvested on an area of 12.3 million hectares, including 6,773,000 hectares of wheat, 3,772,000 hectares of barley, 283,000 tons of rye, 292,000 tons of oats, 270,000 tons of peas, and 858,000 tons of oil seed rapes.
According to the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food, Ukraine's grain harvest in 2011 is expected to reach 42 million tons.
