Miller Magazine Issue: 127 July 2020

63 INTERVIEW MILLER / JULY 2020 Ukraine is one of the world’s top grain exporters. The country harvested a record 75.1 million tonnes of grain in 2019, up from 70 million in 2018. Production growth has contributed to the improved export performance of the Blacksea country and it has become a competitive maize and wheat exporter in the world. Given that its domestic supplies are expected to increase faster than domestic consumption, Ukraine's share will increase in the global grain markets. Miller Magazine interviewed with Nikolay Gorbachov, President of the Ukrainian Grain Association (UGA), who has a significant role in Ukraine's being an important ac- tor in the international grain markets. He is President of UGA since 2017, whose members export up to 90% of Ukrainian grain crops annually. He previously worked as Director for “New World Grain Ukraine” (Soufflet Group) and as Commercial Director for “Soufflet Ukraine” in Ukraine and Russia. Worked for various Agri trading companies, he has more than 20 years of experience in the Ukrainian agrarian market. He was awarded the “Honorary Medal” by the Ukraine government in 2008 and a Diploma from the Cabinet Ministers in 2009. Speaking to Miller Magazine Mr. Gorbachov assesses on recent developments in the grain industry and the prospect for Ukrainian grain exports. Mr. Gorbachov, could you please give some infor- mation about the Ukrainian Grain Association? What is the mission of your Union? The Ukrainian Grain Association (UGA) is an associa- tion of grain producers, processors, and exporters. The organization founded in 1998 to protect the legitimate common interests of its members, promoting the forma- tion and development of the grain market in Ukraine, and creating the necessary organizational conditions for the interaction of its members. The members of UGA are worldwide known corpora- tions, the biggest Ukrainian exporters, and grain manu- factures, who export up to 90% of Ukrainian grain crops annually. We are glad to be a partner of IGC and GAFTA. What are the initial effects of the coronavirus out- break on the Ukrainian grain exports? How the coro- navirus could impact Ukrainian grain supply? As you know, in March when quarantine started in Ukraine, agriculture was not under any restrictions. So the pandemic situation didn't have any impact on agricul- ture production. But we had some trouble with the sea- ports of our importers and some turbulence with trans- portation. It had not a big influence, but some discomfort we had. But it was the end of the marketing year, that’s why we have exported almost all export volume, so it wasn’t a problem. Do you think Ukraine would apply the grain export restrictions in the coming period? There is a tradition in Ukraine. Every year UGA and other grain market participants signed the Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry for Development of Economy, Trade and Agriculture of Ukraine for the new marketing year. This year it happened on the 1st of July. Memorandum plays an essential role in maintaining the balance between domestic grain consumption and the country’s export opportunities. Stability and predict- ability are key priorities for the Ukrainian grain market and one of the main factors of national food security. The document contains mechanisms for the interaction of grain market participants, exchange of information on grain export prospects, monitoring of grain market func- tioning. The parties agreed to monitor the state of grain export from Ukraine monthly. Additionally, the signed docu- ment is designed to contribute to the stabilization of the Ukrainian grain market by stimulating the uninterrupted grain exports. Grain market participants will be informed in advance about the critical grain export opportunities as well as changes in foreign trade regimes. In addition, Annex to the Memorandum of Understanding will be signed in August to establish the maximum export vol- umes of wheat in 2020/2021 MY. The Memorandum for the new marketing year is a re- sult of sustainable B2G cooperation between the business community and the Ministry of Economic Development, Trade, and Agriculture of Ukraine. So, we don’t need any restrictions on export, because we have such cooperation with the Government, and we know the export volume at the beginning of the year. Ukraine's grain exports have reached a record in the 2019/20 season. Will Ukraine be able to repeat this success in the new season? Can you share the projec- tions for wheat, corn and barley production for the 2020/21 season? Nonetheless, the grain crop production in Ukraine grow annually. UGA`s expert foresight shows the pro- duction growth on 100 MMT, and 70 MMT of export till the 2022 year. Ukraine is heading for these indicators, so for the 2019/20 year, the production reached 98 MMT and the export reached more than 62 MMT. It was a re- cord, because of record production and export of wheat and corn. This year we expect the same volume of production – 97-98 MMT and export we expect will be 58 MMT. So we expect less wheat production but more corn. And, we hope we will have a new corn production record. Every month, UGA publishes supply and demand bal- ances, where we say about our main indicators and of course we publish our forecast. This is free public infor- mation. Everybody can read it on our website.