Last Friday, June 6, in Kyiv, the international agricultural forum Agro Ukraine Summit took place for the second year in a row.
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The agricultural sector is a driving force of Ukraine’s economy, and the summit is an important platform for exchanging ideas, analyzing challenges, and developing strategies to increase productivity, sustainable development, and international trade in agricultural products with a focus on European integration.
This year’s summit was prepared as a large-scale event in the Ukrainian market with broad involvement of European partners, international organizations, and companies not only to unite all key stakeholders of the agricultural and food sectors but also to create a dynamic platform for inclusive national dialogue, cooperation, and growth.
One of the key achievements of the event was the participation of leading Ukrainian agricultural associations, such as the Ukrainian Grain Association, the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club, the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Council, the Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation, the Ukrainian Food Industry Association, the Ukrainian Legume and Soy Association, the Association of Dairy Enterprises of Ukraine, the All-Ukrainian Congress of Farmers, as well as publications like Aggeek, Ukraine Facility Platform, the Solar Energy Association, and the Ukrainian-European Business Hub. The preparation for such a large-scale event indeed required the involvement of a large number of specialized organizations, which demonstrated that united efforts of experts yield significant results.
Additionally, the summit was actively supported by the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine – the event was attended and actively participated in discussions not only by Minister Vitaliy Koval and his deputies but also by heads and specialists of leading departments of the ministry. Former Acting Minister of Agrarian Policy, Dr. Olga Trofimtseva, not only chaired the summit’s program committee but also acted as its co-host and moderator of several panel discussions.
The night of June 6 in Ukraine was once again restless due to mass attacks by aggressors. The capital was under fire again, and in the morning, Kyiv residents and guests of the city faced serious logistical problems, which caused some participants of the Agro Ukraine Summit to arrive late for its opening. However, the vast majority eventually made it to the International Exhibition Center “Parkovy,” where the event took place, and within an hour, more than 2000 people were registered – setting a record attendance for agricultural events in the country not only during wartime but also in peacetime.
The summit began with the Ukrainian National Anthem – a tradition aimed at affirming who we are, what country is in our hearts, and for the prosperity of which we live, work, and fight. A minute of silence was observed to honor those who died in the war with Russian occupiers – this tribute to their memory has also become a tradition.
The participants and guests of the Agro Ukraine Summit were welcomed by the director of “ProAgro Group,” Oleg Klymenko. The summit was officially opened by Olga Trofimtseva, emphasizing that the agricultural sector is a driving force of Ukraine’s economy, and the summit is an important platform for exchanging ideas, analyzing challenges, and developing strategies to increase efficiency and sustainable development of Ukrainian agriculture as a guarantor of the country’s and the world’s food security.
From Brussels, the participants of the summit were wished fruitful work by the Deputy Director-General of the Directorate-General for Agriculture of the European Commission, Pierre Bascou. He emphasized the unwavering support of Ukraine by the EU government and readiness to provide maximum assistance to Ukrainian agro-producers on the path to European integration.
In addition to the main conference, summit participants had the opportunity to attend 5 sectoral conferences that worked throughout the day:
AgTech Forum
“Futurology or the Future of Grain Storage” conference
“Efficient Livestock and Poultry Farming” conference
“Trends in Crop Processing” conference
Solar Agro Conference
Due to the number of conferences, it is not possible to cover each one in a single publication, as it would be an extremely long read. In summary, within each conference, there were 6-7 thematic panels, with over 140 speakers in total – each of them discussed the most important issues in their field, engaged in discussions with the audience, and answered questions from moderators and participants. Recordings of all speakers’ presentations can be viewed on the official Proagro Information Company YouTube page.
However, we will focus on the main topic of the main Agro Ukraine Summit conference. Coincidentally, the summit took place on the second day after the expiration of the EU’s autonomous trade preferences in trade with Ukraine. At the same time, agricultural products are one of the main goods in Ukrainian exports, and agricultural exports to the EU, thanks to the same preferences introduced by the European Commission at the beginning of the full-scale invasion by the Russian Federation, have accounted for more than half of Ukraine’s total agricultural exports in recent years.
Is there life after ATP when exports to the EU return to pre-war rules with their duties and quotas on a range of Ukrainian goods? This question was addressed by Minister of Agrarian Policy Vitaliy Koval, his First Deputy Taras Vysotskyi, Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine, Trade Representative of Ukraine Taras Kachka, Advisor to the Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olena Sotnyk, and the aforementioned representative of the Directorate-General for Agriculture of the EC Pierre Bascou. Additionally, Executive Director of the International Grain Council Arno Peti, Secretary-General of the European Association of Agricultural Producers COCERAL Iliana Axiotiades, President of UZA Mykola Horbachov, Head of the European Office of UKAB Nazar Bobytskyi also expressed their views on this matter.
Partially calming the passions, Vitaliy Koval informed that work under the former trade rules, already dubbed as 7/12, will continue until the end of July. By that time, negotiations between the Ukrainian delegation and representatives of the European Commission should be concluded, resulting in updated trading rules between Ukraine and the EU within the Association Agreement. They will not be as liberal as ATP, but the Ukrainian side is currently making every effort to ensure they are as fair as possible for Ukraine as an official candidate for EU membership and as a country engaged in a fierce war, defending not only itself but also the entire eastern flank of the European Union.
In a brief interview at the Agro Ukraine Summit, Vitaliy Koval also answered several other questions, including those posed from the conference hall. One participant inquired about the minister’s most ambitious goal for 2025. “My main goal is to lead Ukraine through a point of no return from a raw material to an agro-industrial state and to meet January 1, 2026, already in a peaceful country where agrarians have done no less for victory than all others,” he replied.
Each conference at the Agro Ukraine Summit, as well as each panel, had its own relevant topics, interesting questions, and answers. But perhaps the largest number of them was at the Agro Ukraine Expo exhibition, which operated within the summit and featured over 110 companies with their stands showcasing their advanced products and services for the agricultural sector, new technologies, and solutions.
Additionally, two large lounge areas were available at the summit with comfortable networking spaces. At times, it seemed that their occupancy even exceeded that of the conference halls. However, this was understandable, as one of the main values and advantages of such events is the opportunity for participants to meet, exchange business contacts, and conduct business negotiations. Therefore, at the Agro Ukraine Summit, we strive to maximize these opportunities, including through a relaxed atmosphere, pleasant live music, and tasty refreshments. As one of the summit guests noted: “More contacts – more contracts.” We fully agree with this, which is why we strive for it.
A bright conclusion to the day’s work at the summit was the performance by the National Academic Folk Instruments Orchestra of Ukraine, which sparked emotions with its incredible sound and unique combination of traditional Ukrainian music with world-famous hits, as well as an almost hour-long concert by Ukrainian singer, winner of Eurovision 2016, Jamala.
It is also worth noting that this year’s Agro Ukraine Summit was the 200th anniversary conference for the organizing company “ProAgro Group.” With over 2000 participants at this year’s summit, the total number of people who have attended the company’s events in 20 years of event management has reached 50,000!
To mark this occasion and thank all participants at the summit, “ProAgro Group” raffled a certificate for exhibiting at the company’s future events. Additionally, 5 winners of the draw received a pass for free attendance at all conferences for the next 20 years!
After all the ceremonies, the director of “ProAgro Group” announced that next year, there will be not an Agro Ukraine Summit but an Agro Ukraine Week – a multi-day event aimed at becoming not only the largest agricultural event in Ukraine but also one of the leading events in Europe. By the way, this idea has already been approved and supported by the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food. So, the preparations have already begun!
Finally, “ProAgro Group” expresses sincere gratitude to the title partners of this year’s Agro Ukraine Summit – companies AgriGo, GRECO group, and VITAGRO, the general partners – companies ERIDON and TOKMAK DIESEL, the exclusive partners – companies A.TOM and VOLTAGE, as well as over 100 other partner companies.
We also thank all the media that became information partners of the Agro Ukraine Summit, led by the general media partner – the TV channel “WE ARE UKRAINE.” In addition, we congratulate all journalists on their professional holiday – Journalist Day, which coincided with the summit on June 6.