Ukraine. 2022/23 – the season of the biggest logistical challenges

The 2022/23 season is over, and this season can be called the “most logistically challenging” in recent years. Sure, the logistical challenges were not caused by a record harvest, but by the consequences of war in Ukraine.

However, the entire agricultural sector, exporters, and the government found the strength to overcome many of the logistical obstacles that stood between Ukrainian grain in the field and the end consumer somewhere in faraway Egypt or China.

Please, consider UkrAgroConsult summary of 2022/23 in terms of logistics and storage.

Export of huge domestic stocks of commodities and opening of the grain corridor

In February 2022, all deep-water Ukrainian ports were blocked and agricultural exports almost stopped for a couple of months. Exporters began to switch to grain exports by land and through the small Danube ports, but the pace of exports was still slow.

This led to a huge carry-over of around 16.5 M mt of grain for the 2022/23 season, and Ukraine had to somehow ship this grain. In July 2022, only 2.66 M mt of commodities were exported before the Grain Corridor started operating.

It would take 6-7 months to export only carry in stocks from the 2021/22 season if only the new overland export routes were used.

In August 2022, the Grain Corridor was launched, with the great impact on the export rates. The Grain Corridor in fact saved the 2021 and 2023 grain harvests. Over the 11 months, the 32.4 M mt of grains, oilseeds and processed products were exported through the Corridor.