As Ukraine navigates the dual challenges of conflict and agricultural development, the resilience and innovation of its organic farmers—especially the women at the forefront—bring hope for a sustainable and self-reliant future.  

Accelerating Ukraine’s organic agriculture sector 

Since 2016, the start of Russia's annexation of Crimea and of the ensuing conflict in Ukraine, GOPA AFC has been implementing the German-Ukrainian Cooperation in Organic Agriculture (COA) project. The project, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture, facilitates the implementation of organic legislation, fosters knowledge-sharing on organic agriculture, and provides practical support to Ukraine's organic agriculture sector amidst political instability and conflict. 

Organic farming is crucial for Ukraine’s prospective EU accession, particularly by increasing the country’s export potential. What’s more, “organic farming can increase the country’s food security during wartime circumstances, because the pesticides and nitrates needed for conventional farming methods are difficult to obtain and expensive,” says Dr. Stefan Dreesmann, COA Project Leader. 

Effective partnerships are key to success 

Despite the challenging environment, the project team has assisted the Ukrainian government in enacting the country’s first ever organic legislation, supported the certification of over 80 organic farms, developed a digital platform for disseminating knowledge on organic farming practices, and coordinated the supply of big generators to 25 organic farms in the eastern part of the country, where ongoing Russian attacks have been particularly damaging to power systems. These successes, among others, are establishing an important foundation for the long-term growth of the organic agriculture sector in Ukraine. “These are huge feats, especially during an ongoing war,” says Dreesmann.  

Delivering tangible sector-wide results while navigating the complexities involved in working with government partners (including the Ukrainian Ministry of Agropolicy and Food, the Ukrainian Food Safety Agency, and the National Accreditation Agency) during times of international conflict is no small task. “We’re now quite well known within the sector,” says Stefanie Maak, Project Manager at GOPA AFC. “As a result of the impact of our work, we’ve received task extensions to scale up the project.” 

Women are the driving force of Ukraine’s organic agriculture 

Amidst the adversity, women farmers are steadfast in their commitment. The following video, produced in February 2024 as part of the COA project, highlights the strength, resilience, and dedication of Ukrainian women which have been the cornerstone of the country’s organic agriculture sector. “The war is going on and many men are at the front, so women had to learn to do [this work],” explains Julia Voroshchuk, Ukrainian farmer and co-owner of Organic Expert LLC in the video below. “The world will not stop there. The main victory of the war is that [women] kept the team together,” she says, noting that organic agriculture has developed noticeably since the start of the conflict.