Hryhorii and Mykola Shamrytskyi on the “AgroTalk” YouTube channel spoke with Dmytro Solomchuk, Member of the Parliament of Ukraine, a member of the Agrarian Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the “Harvest of Victory” fund. Over three years of operation, the fund has provided farmers with machinery worth about $50 million, helping them in the most challenging regions of Ukraine to continue their activities despite the war. This candid conversation covers support for small and medium-sized farms, reserving farmers, the issue of landmine explosions, and the prospects for the development of Ukrainian villages.
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– Dmytro Viktorovych, let’s start with an introduction: tell our readers about yourself.
I am Dmytro, from the city of Rivne, a native Rivne resident who loves the Ukrainian village. I have worked my entire life in the field related to agriculture, and now, as a Member of Parliament and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the “Harvest of Victory” fund, I have the opportunity to genuinely help Ukrainian farmers.
– Where did the idea to create the “Harvest of Victory” fund come from?
From the first days of the full-scale invasion, it was clearly visible that Russian troops were deliberately destroying Ukraine’s agriculture. Every day, videos emerged showing destroyed equipment, burning fields, even cows and pigs being shot, and tractors and combines being taken to Russia and Chechnya. Russia wanted to manipulate global food security.
The idea to create the fund arose immediately in March 2022. After preparing all the necessary documents, the fund was officially registered on May 9, and by May, the first equipment had already started arriving.
– Who initiated the creation of the fund?
The main donor and initiator was Howard Buffett, who is still actively helping Ukrainian farmers.
– What are the main areas of activity of your fund?
We describe our work in three words: sow, harvest, preserve. The fund provides equipment for planting – tractors and seeders for both winter and spring crops. We supply sprayers for crop care. We provide combines for harvesting early grain crops as well as fall crops like soybeans and corn, equipping them with flex headers and corn headers.
This year, analyzing market trends, we noticed that farmers increased rapeseed sowing, so the fund acquired rapeseed headers. We are already accepting applications for rapeseed harvesting for the new season.
– How much money has been invested over the years to help farmers through your fund?
In total, Howard Buffett purchased machinery in the USA and Europe, which he provided to the fund for use by farmers, worth approximately $50 million. This includes not only agricultural machinery but also grain storage bags. By the way, we were the first to initiate this in Ukraine, especially for Kherson and other frontline areas where storage facilities were destroyed and farmers had no place to store their harvest.
– Besides agricultural machinery, what other assistance does the fund provide?
We are now also supplying Caterpillar bulldozers to affected regions. Farmers need to level fields after missile strikes, drone attacks, and explosions, and rebuild destroyed warehouses and farms. Farms usually do not have bulldozers, and such work cannot be done manually. This is much faster and more economical, which is crucial for rapid recovery.
Because without farmers, there will be no Ukrainian village. That is paramount.
– How extensive is your financial assistance on a national scale?
On one hand, we can be proud that we are among the largest in Ukraine. But on the other, as a Member of Parliament, I believe that in a country where agriculture is a priority sector, there should be at least 10-15 such funds in different areas: poultry, livestock, crop production, etc.
This is extremely important, especially in such difficult times when farmers cannot accumulate enough funds. Even when they take state loans at 5-7-9%, these funds are used not for development, but for survival. And those are completely different economic approaches.
– How many units of equipment are currently operating thanks to your fund?
As of today, more than 300 units of equipment are operational. If we count corn headers, rapeseed tables separately – it’s over 400 units. But the main equipment – tractors, seeders, sprayers, combines – amounts to over 300 units.
As you can see, we have new tracked tractors purchased by Howard Buffett. These are the first 10 units that will mainly operate in Kharkiv and Kherson regions. They are designed for high-speed tillage, exert less pressure on the soil, and, importantly, better withstand anti-personnel mine explosions. Tracks are more reliable than tires, and this primarily protects the life and health of the tractor driver.
– How is it determined where the equipment will go?
Before the season begins, the fund’s website and social networks announce the acceptance of applications. Priority is given to affected regions: Kherson, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, Chernihiv, Sumy, and parts of Kyiv region.
The Supervisory Board reviews applications and determines who has suffered the most and needs the equipment first. If some equipment is released (for example, corn is not sown in Kherson and the seeder is free), it can be used in other regions – Sumy, Chernihiv, or others, assisting small and medium farmers.
– How can a farmer receive assistance from the fund?
A farmer who has suffered can visit our page, our website, get in touch, and submit an application. We have an automated system that all Supervisory Board members can see, and then a general vote is held to decide on the provision of equipment.
The equipment is provided free of charge for the duration of the work.
– You are constantly upgrading equipment. What exactly do you upgrade?
Yes, we don’t just provide equipment; we constantly upgrade it. When the season starts, we go with the team to the most difficult areas, close to the combat zone, and test how the equipment works in the field to understand what needs to be changed.
This is the most modern equipment with full configuration. Howard did not skimp on this, understanding that comfort and speed of work are very important. Much of the equipment is equipped with antennas, navigation systems for precision work, especially for spraying and sowing. John Deere combines are equipped with antennas for autopilot harvesting, significantly simplifying the operator’s job.
Also, at the request of farmers, we equipped Kinze seeders with a fertilizer application system. We specifically purchased tanks for all models of Kinze 3005 and 21-row seeders. This improves crop quality, saves farmers money, and delivers better results.
– How many hectares does your equipment serve, and how many farmers has the “Harvest of Victory” fund helped?
Over three years, assistance was provided across 468,000 hectares – including sowing and harvesting. In total, we helped nearly 2,300 farmers. We mainly work with small and medium-sized farms, although in Kherson there are farms that used to have 4-5 thousand hectares but now cultivate only 1,000 because the rest of the land has not yet been demined.
– How much equipment has been damaged or destroyed during the fund’s operation?
The worst hit was a John Deere combine standing at a farm base. Fortunately, people left 15-20 minutes before a missile struck nearby. The combine was overturned, heavily damaged, and cannot be restored.
There was also an incident with an anti-tank mine explosion in Kharkiv region – the combine was severely damaged and will likely be used for parts. But we kept it to show the consequences of the war, especially to foreigners who visit.
In total, there were about 7-8 incidents of tractors hitting mines, but with minor damage, as the mines were anti-personnel. Usually, tires are damaged, sometimes the steering rod, the disc may be bent, but the main thing is that people remain safe and sound.
In one case with a combine, the operator was slightly injured, urgently taken to the hospital, but thankfully, everything turned out well. Of course, the equipment is a loss, but people are the most important.
– You actively raise the issue of reserving small farmers. When will farmers with up to 500 ha receive reservations?
As far as I know, some regions have already changed the criteria and started reserving even farms of 50-100 ha, but this is not everywhere. We are now waiting for a response from the government; they have a few days left according to the review deadline. I hope the decisions will be positive.
This issue concerns not only farmers with up to 500 ha but also those involved in seasonal products – vegetables, berries, orchards, livestock complexes. Heads of small farms definitely need to be reserved because if such a farmer is mobilized, there will simply be no one to work on his 100-200 ha.
The current criteria are suitable for large farms that can pay salaries and have sufficient land. But these conditions are absolutely unsuitable for small farms – they simply cannot protect themselves.
Even the European Union insists on supporting small farmers. Their subsidy policy clearly supports farms up to 120 ha, up to 100 cows, up to 500 sheep. They understand that if a village has 15-20 small farmers, it doesn’t become socially dependent on the central budget – it thrives, pays taxes.
If a village has no jobs, and fields are simply sown, sprayed, and harvested, with no people working there, this creates a huge social burden on the budget. The village does not become self-sufficient and eventually disappears. This must not be allowed.
– What three main state-level initiatives do you see for the development of farming in Ukraine?
First, reservation, so farmers can work and grow.
Second, all public procurement for security forces, schools, kindergartens, and government institutions should be carried out exclusively from our Ukrainian farmers, not from resellers or speculators. Together with colleagues, we submitted the corresponding bill a few months ago so that procurements up to 2 million hryvnias would be made specifically from Ukrainian farmers. We hope our colleagues will support it.
Third, our farmers must have free access to the shelves of Ukrainian supermarkets and stores. Now we often see Italian, French, Polish goods on the shelves, but the Ukrainian farmer cannot get there due to difficult conditions: they cannot pay for shelf space, marketing services, or wait for a minimum 90-day payment deferral.
As consumers, we pay for goods immediately at checkout, but chains use this money to buy imported goods, investing in other countries. This is wrong and unfair.
Fair conditions must be established: for perishable goods, payment deferral should be a maximum of 10 days; for others – no more than 30 days. How can a craft producer compete if they are paid once a quarter? Their turnover would be only four times a year, and they are forced to make a high markup to cover loan and salary expenses.
These three initiatives will give a “breath of fresh air” to our farmers and craft producers who want to sow, process, and feed with quality products. Today, the trend is not about flashy foreign packaging with small print but about quality Ukrainian products in craft packaging. This is the revival of the Ukrainian village when modern people come and work there.
📺 The interview was recorded for the “AgroTalk” YouTube channel: the full version is already on the channel.
– What would you wish for Ukrainian farmers and our subscribers?
I want to wish farmers and consumers (because it’s all interconnected) generous harvests and fair prices. So that there are no such upheavals when farmers have no price, or consumers are outraged that onions or cabbage are too expensive. Everything should be balanced.
And in the de-occupied territories and in the combat zones – a safe sowing and safe harvesting season. Today our equipment is working there, and farmers are installing additional protection on tractors because it’s very dangerous. Safety is now the most important thing.