Ukraine’s 2026 Harvest Begins: What Crops Are Being Gathered Amid Shrinking Farmland.

Ukraine’s 2026 Harvest Season

According to Слово і Діло — Інфографіка: Ukraine has launched its 2026 harvest campaign, with farmers focusing on early grain crops. Over recent years, both planted acreage and grain yields have undergone major shifts. In 2022, the area sown with grains dropped to 12.3 million hectares, driven by a combination of factors including armed conflict and economic strain that reduced the total agricultural land base.

Trends in Agriculture

By 2023, grain planting areas had fallen further to 11 million hectares, highlighting a continued downturn in the country’s farming sector. The 2022 harvest yielded 54.8 million metric tons of grains and legumes—the lowest total since 2015. This figure stands in stark contrast to earlier years:

• 2021: 86 million metric tons of grains and legumes
• 2020: 64.9 million metric tons

In 2025, the area planted with grains and legumes recovered slightly to 11.9 million hectares—a modest uptick from recent lows but still far below the 16 million hectares recorded in 2021. For comparison, in 2019, farmers harvested 75.1 million metric tons of grains and legumes, underscoring the significant decline in output over the past few years.

Overall, the trends in planted areas and grain yields reveal the severe challenges facing Ukraine’s agricultural sector, emphasizing the urgent need for innovative solutions to stabilize and revitalize farming operations.

These figures not only reflect the economic hardships endured by the industry but also highlight the pressing requirement to adapt to new realities—such as adopting modern technologies and improved agronomic practices. At the same time, shrinking crop areas and lower yields could threaten the nation’s food security and its export capacity, demanding close attention from both policymakers and farmers.