Since the start of the full-scale war, 88 flour mills have resumed operations in Ukraine, with 22 mills starting operations in 2024 and 10 in 2025, according to Rodion Rybchinsky, director of the Ukrainian Flour Millers Association.
“As of the end of 2021, there were 678 industrial enterprises operating in the grain processing sector in Ukraine. Unfortunately, during the full-scale invasion, we lost 192 enterprises. They either remained in temporarily occupied territories, were completely destroyed and ceased operations, or were partially damaged and suspended operations due to a lack of raw materials and logistics capabilities,” he said at the Agro2Food exhibition in Kyiv on Wednesday.
The expert noted that, starting in 2023, Ukraine began to restore its grain processing industry. Rybchynskyi attributed this to the problem with grain exports in 2022.
“Many agricultural producers saw a way out of the situation in opening grain processing facilities. They invested their funds. In addition, the state began to provide grants for reconstruction and capacity expansion,” he explained.
According to Rybchinsky, since the start of the full-scale war, 66 grain processing enterprises have resumed their work, and 22 enterprises started from scratch in 2024. At the same time, about 10 grain processing enterprises were launched in 2025.
Analyzing the specialization of the new plants, the head of the Ukrainian Flour Millers Association noted that 40% of the new enterprises are engaged in flour production, 30% produce cereals, and another 30% produce pasta. Geographically, the new enterprises are located in western and central Ukraine.
Rybchinsky emphasized that this refers specifically to the construction of new plants, not relocation, as processing enterprises depend on the existing raw material base and consumers. He also noted the complexity of transporting mills and finding new land plots.
According to the head of the Ukrainian Flour Millers Association, the cost of relocating a mill is about $1 million for its owners. According to Rybchynsky, the number of grain processing enterprises that have relocated their facilities can be “counted on the fingers of one hand.”
The expert added that as of 2024, Ukraine had produced 2.34 million tons of flour, which is 22% less than in 2021, before the war, when the country produced 3 million tons.
