The agricultural group Ristone Holdings plans to complete the modernization of the acquired Kosarsky Distillery LLC at the end of October 2025, with production expected to start in November-December 2025, the agricultural holding’s press service reported on Facebook.
The agricultural group recalled that it acquired the distillery in August 2023 and received a license to produce undenatured ethyl alcohol in October 2024. This allowed it to begin a major modernization of the undenatured ethyl alcohol production line in February 2025, with a planned capacity of 36 tons/day. In addition, a new high-tech distillation and dehydration line is being prepared for launch at the distillery.
Ristone Holdings has already completed the reconstruction of existing workshops: boiler rooms; processing and cooking departments; installed a water treatment system and assembled a new gas pipeline.
“The key element of the investment project is the construction of a new distillation and dehydration line with a capacity of 60 tons/day. This is a modern technological complex designed to produce bioethanol of the highest degree of purification. The industrial scale of production at 60 tons/day will allow the plant to become a significant player in the Ukrainian market and meet the demand of large consumers,” the agricultural holding noted, adding that it plans to launch the bioethanol production project at the end of 2025.
Ristone Holdings is a vertically integrated agricultural holding company that includes: Dnipromlyn LLC, Bread Factory No. 10 LLC, Orilsky United Elevator LLC, Orilskaya Agricultural Firm LLC, Agroalliance LLC, Agrofirma Victoria, LLC, Agrofirma im. Gorkogo, STOV Zlagoda, etc.
Ristone Holdings cultivates 65.8 thousand hectares in the Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhia regions. It is engaged in the cultivation of grain and industrial crops, animal husbandry, production, and wholesale and retail trade in agricultural products, in particular, flour, bread, bakery products, etc.
In November 2021, the agricultural holding company acquired the Kosarsky Distillery (Kosari village, Smila, Cherkasy region) through Agrofirma im. Gorkogo LLC for UAH 162 million, which is three times more than the starting price. Ristone Holdings announced its intention to invest approximately UAH 130 million in the development of the acquired asset.
The founder and chairman of the supervisory board of Ristone Holdings is Vadym Nesterenko.
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.
In January-September 2025, Euroins Ukraine (Kyiv) collected UAH 635.1 million in net premiums, which is 71.1% more than in the same period of 2024.
According to the company’s interim report posted on the information disclosure system of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission (NSSMC), its gross premiums for this period amounted to UAH 1.043 billion (more than 2.2 times). UAH 201.8 million was transferred to reinsurance (more than 2.4 times).
During the period, the company paid out UAH 204.9 million, which is 16.7% more than during the same period a year ago. At the same time, administrative expenses amounted to UAH 53.037 million, which is 49.2% higher than in January-September 2024.
The financial result from operating activities of IC Euroins Ukraine for nine months amounted to UAH 64.5 million, net profit – UAH 55.8 million, while a year earlier the loss amounted to UAH 10.060 million and UAH 24.439 million, respectively.
Euroins Ukraine is a universal non-life insurer that has been operating in the Ukrainian market since 1992. The company has 75 representative offices throughout the country and is licensed to provide insurance in 16 classes. It is actively involved in the segments of auto insurance, medical insurance, property insurance, liability insurance, and cargo insurance for private and corporate clients.
Euroins Ukraine Insurance Company is a member of the Motor (Transport) Insurance Bureau of Ukraine, the League of Insurance Organizations of Ukraine (LIOU), and the European Business Association (EBA).
Geographical structure of Ukraine’s foreign trade (surplus) in January-May 2025, million USD
Source: Open4Business.com.ua
Scientists have found that cocoa powder, which is rich in flavanols, can play a significant role in strengthening artery health, according to New Atlas.
In a recently published study, researchers analyzed the effect of high-flavanol cocoa on arterial function in adult volunteers. It turned out that regular consumption of this product contributed to improved elasticity of the arterial walls — a key indicator of cardiovascular stability.
According to the study’s authors, adding a product with a high content of cocoa flavanols can be considered one of the additional methods of preventing vascular and heart disease. In particular, flavanols stimulate the release of nitric oxide, a substance that dilates blood vessels and reduces arterial resistance.
“Our work shows that intervention with a natural food component, cocoa flavanols, can improve vascular function in adults without significant cardiovascular disease,” said the lead author of the study.
However, the researchers emphasize that this approach does not replace clinical therapy, but serves only as a complementary measure along with proper nutrition, physical activity, and avoiding harmful habits.
It was previously known that dark chocolate containing cocoa with a high percentage of flavanols is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular events. The new data confirm the mechanism of this effect and pave the way for the development of functional foods based on cocoa flavanols.
World demand for gold excluding over-the-counter (OTC) transactions in the third quarter of 2025 amounted to 1.26 thousand tons, which is 5% higher than the result of the corresponding period last year, calculated by the World Gold Council (WGC).
Investors continued to play a key role: purchases in ETFs in the third quarter amounted to 222 tons, demand for coins and bars – 316 tons (for the fourth consecutive quarter it exceeded 300 tons). Central bank purchases also remain at a high level of 220 tons – 28% more than in the previous quarter.
Supply in the gold market increased by 3% to 1.31 thousand tons. This is a quarterly record in the history of observations. The excess supply, 55 tons, was absorbed by the OTC market.
Earlier, the Experts Club think tank presented an analysis of the world’s leading gold producing countries in its Youtube channel video – https://youtube.com/shorts/DWbzJ1e2tJc?si=YuRnDiu7jtfUPBR9.
