Farmers in Ukraine describe depleting potato stocks, slaughtering their own animals for food, and Russian troops invading their farms.
Russia’s unjust invasion of Ukraine has caused countless problems and has resulted in the loss of so many innocent civilian lives. The global food supply is at risk, and food prices are likely to continue to rise because of this war.
Source: Down On The Farm/Youtube
Brave Ukrainians who have stayed in the country include many farmers who describe terrifying situations of Russian troops taking over farms, hiding tanks in barns, and food stocks greatly depleting.
The Guardian spoke to three farmers who are currently still in Ukraine, and one of them is Andrii Pastushenko, a dairy farmer who is only 12 miles away from Kherson, a town that Russian troops have taken over. Earlier this week, uninvited Russian soldiers appeared at his farm and began leaving their tanks in his barn. A few days later, the shelling of the Kherson airport sent the soldiers packing.
“They quickly packed up this morning, taking two cars and food from the farm and saying they were ‘nationalizing’ them,” he told The Guardian. He said that they did not pay for anything and left him with a final, “See you soon.”
Pastushenko’s farm has been supplying whatever they can to local villages and families and turning grain into porridge for the residents who are still there. He and the farm’s 70 employees have been working non-stop and attempting to help the community in any way they can. So when the Russian troops came and took their supplies, it was devastating for the farm.
Pastushenko is also running out of feed for his animals, and with the Russian troops so close, he doesn’t know when and if they will be able to plant crops or harvest. He has been slaughtering many of his animals to feed the community, and he says he cannot leave because if he does, other people will come and slaughter his animals for meat.
Another farmer Kees Huizinga runs a large-scale farm and has lost a lot of his staff to military service for the country. The demand for dairy in Ukraine has not stopped, especially in the West, where many people have sought refuge from the Russian-ridden Eastern parts. With his limited staff, he is unable to keep up with these demands and has been slaughtering many animals to provide enough meat for the community as well.
Another one of the struggling farmers is a man who co-runs an arable farm near Lviv. They grow potatoes and protein cops, including soya beans. The farm is near 5,000 acres and supplies potatoes to a vast domestic market, and he is expected to plant a new crop in the coming weeks.
His farm has been supplying potatoes to Ukrainian refugees and the military. Still, the supply is running scarce, and he worries that soon they will run out without the ability to plant more crops to keep up with the demand. There are shortages in fuel, fertilizer, and pesticides, and not being able to grow crops will affect the food supply and the upcoming crop seasons for the foreseeable future.
“There is a desire from the Ukrainian government that the crop is planted. We will scale back slightly here, but do plan to plant. However, we need help particularly in terms of crop-protection supplies to protect our potatoes from diseases such as late blight that can devastate crops,” he told The Guardian. Sign this petition to stand with Ukraine!
Source: One Green Planet
