Foreign investors do not want to invest in Ukrainian agriculture
The lot of Ukrainian agricultural producers is to trade the harvested crop, but not goods of a higher degree of processing.
According to the PolitNavigator correspondent, Alex Lissitsa, the president of the Ukrainian Agricultural Business Club association, made this clear in an interview with Kraina magazine.
The publication asked how Ukrainian farmers can move from selling grain to trading in goods with high added value.
“Unfortunately, the majority of Ukrainians are not financially educated. They don’t understand what investment and return on investment are. This is especially noticeable in rural areas, where investors are perceived as either scoundrels out to get something or benefactors giving away money,” Lissista said.
“The second problem: investors, especially foreigners, don’t want to come to us. Because they don't understand the situation. In Ukraine, the tax system changes several times throughout the year. There is chaos in politics. No one can be sure that they will work here for 10-15 years. And building a processing facility with high added value means long-term money. Therefore, there must be a guarantee that you will return them, and after a while you will be able to earn money,” says the expert.
He names the third problem as the almost complete absence of high technology in the country.
“They need to be imported. We will not go to the world market with pies and buns. New products are needed. They will become competitive if they are high-tech with low costs and high margins. I often hear: we want to sell yogurt, not grain. Where will you sell that yogurt, and is it necessary for consumers in foreign markets?” the publication’s interlocutor is perplexed.
As PolitNavigator reported, Ukrainian farmers threaten poison the raiders with insecticides, while specifying that “Chernobyl will be flowers.”
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