Ukraine hopes to be world’s ‘food basket’

Wherever he looks, Agriculture Minister Oleksiy Pavlenko sees room for investment in his industry – infrastructure, logistics and technology. He hopes $8 billion will come so that Ukraine can reach its potential as a global food provider. Or, in the words of U.S.-Ukraine Business Council President Morgan Williams, Ukraine should move from being the “bread basket” of the world to the “food basket.”Half of Ukraine’s 63.8 million tons grain harvest was sold abroad in 2014, accounting for a quarter of the country’s total exports. But the capital-intensive industry desperately needs financing.

Some of that comes from international financial institutions.