Harvest situation in Kherson region is critical: farmers have lost 50,000 hectares of winter crops

Farmers in Kherson region have lost more than 50,000 hectares of winter crops due to drought, spring frosts, Russian drone attacks and fires. About reported Suspilne Kherson.

As of July 10, 46,570 tons of grains and legumes were harvested on the right bank of Kherson region. Most of the wheat, barley, rapeseed, peas, and sunflower crops were lost.

Thus, grain yields in 2025 will be two to three times lower than last year. According to farmer Dmytro Ilyash, the average harvest in Kherson region is 15 centners per hectare.

"We have sunflowers, but they are very weak because of the drought. There will be no harvest there. It is also burning up, so the result is very bad. We also grow rapeseed. This year we suffered a lot from spring frosts. We harvested seven to eight centners of rapeseed, although last year we harvested 30 centners," the farmer emphasized.

Due to the threat of shelling, the harvested crops are stored in plastic sleeves.

Other farmers report an even worse situation. Serhiy Padalka emphasized that this year's harvest is unlikely to cover the costs of seed, fertilizer, combine harvester operation, fuel, and taxes.

In the Vysokivsky starosta district, most farmers also lost their crops. According to starosta Oleksandr Pikhotskyi, some fields yielded up to 5 centners. Many farmers have already stopped harvesting because it is unprofitable.

This year's grain harvest, says Dmytro Yunusov, director of the regional Department of Agriculture and Irrigation Development, is rated as unsatisfactory.

According to Yunusov, if there is no rain in the near future, total crop losses could reach 100,000 hectares.

There is currently no government assistance – neither compensation per hectare nor support for individual farmers. Only registered farmers and holdings can apply for assistance.

The Kherson Regional State Administration appealed to the government to cancel the land tax for farmers in 2025.

Documents are also being prepared to officially recognize the situation as a "state-level disaster." This could pave the way for financial assistance from the reserve fund.

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