No shortage of buckwheat, rye expected in Ukraine, as harvest lower, but carryover higher - UCAB

MOSCOW. Oct 17 (Interfax) - Ukraine has enough buckwheat and rye volumes for domestic consumption both from this year's harvest and from carryover stocks, Svetlana Litvin, head of the analytical department of the Ukrainian Club of Agrarian Business (UCAB) was quoted by Ukrainian media as saying in a statement for the Ukrainian Public News website.

"At first glance, this year the sown areas under buckwheat have shrunk drastically by 40%, and under preliminary estimates, Ukraine will harvest around 130,000 tonnes of buckwheat. The reason for this is that farmers sowed unusually vast areas of buckwheat last year because of the high price and the hopes to gain additional profits," she said.

Ukraine regained the traditional figure for domestic consumption at 100,000 to 110,000 tonnes in 2024, she said. Ukraine also harvested around 210,000 tonnes of buckwheat in the 2023 season, which is almost twice as much as the domestic needs.

"Buckwheat is a product that is consumed in a limited number of countries, so we cannot export the surplus of this product due to the lack of demand on the global market. Therefore, Ukraine will have enough buckwheat both grown this year and its carryover stocks. Therefore, there are no grounds for the rise in prices for buckwheat in the short term," she said.

She also said that Ukraine will harvest around 220,000 tonnes of rye in 2024, which actually meets the domestic needs of Ukrainians. As in the case of buckwheat, there are carryover stocks, which, if required, will make it possible to cover the shortage and provide the Ukrainian population with it.

"In recent years, rye was almost not exported, though before the crisis Ukraine was quite a large exporter of rye. The fact is that with limited logistic routes, the products in high demand such as wheat, corn, barley, and various types of oilseeds are exported. Therefore, prices for products containing rye, such as rye bread, have no growth factors from the point of view of this crop. But one should remember that the cost of bakery products is not only rye flour, but also other components that can affect the growth," she said.