Due to the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation, Ukraine has lost about 25% of its cultivated areas, said deputy agriculture minister Taras Vysotskyi.

‘If to say about the sowing campaign, we currently cannot use approximately 25% of the area due to the hostilities or temporary occupation of territories’, he stated.

The official added that even after liberation, it takes a long time to de-mine and clean Ukrainian territories.

It was also not possible to sow part of the area due to unfavorable weather conditions. Therefore, in the spring it is necessary to cover the deficit of unsown winter crops.

The deputy minister also said that now it is difficult to forecast this year’s gross harvest of agricultural crops, which will depend significantly on the weather and climatic conditions during the field works, as well as the financial and logistical support.