According to the results for January-September 2025, cement producer Mykolaivcement increased its net profit 1.9 times compared to the same period in 2024, to UAH 455.3 million.
According to information on the company’s website, income from ordinary activities for the first nine months of this year increased by 33.7% compared to the same period in 2024 and amounted to UAH 1.9 billion. Gross profit grew by 48.1% and reached UAH 706.3 million.
According to the company, its retained earnings in January-September 2025 decreased by 80.6% to UAH 109.5 million. Current liabilities in the reporting period increased by 56.8% to UAH 7 million, and long-term liabilities by 0.6% to UAH 1.29 billion. The total amount of the company’s assets in January-September decreased by 23.1% to UAH 1.8 billion.
The company reported that in the third quarter, it produced 204.5 thousand tons of products worth UAH 520.4 million. Sales amounted to 210.7 thousand tons worth UAH 835.8 million. Raw materials account for 64% of the production cost structure, electricity for 15.1%, and packaging for 6.8%.
As noted in the report, in the third quarter of 2025, Mykolaivcement’s activities were significantly affected by martial law, exchange rate fluctuations, and the political and economic situation in the country. A decrease in the amount of construction work due to martial law and a decline in the purchasing power of potential customers led to a decrease in demand for products.
In addition, the company reported that the shortage of skilled workers, the slow pace of Ukraine’s economic recovery, and other macroeconomic and geopolitical factors pose significant challenges for the company.
According to the National Securities and Stock Market Commission (NSSMC), as of the first quarter of 2025, the sole shareholder of PJSC Mykolaivcement is the Dutch company CRH Ukraine B.V. (100%).
Mykolaivcement is part of the CEMARK group of cement manufacturers and the CRH group of building materials manufacturers.
CRH is a leading manufacturer of building materials in the world and the largest in North America and Europe. It has 3,200 businesses in 28 countries, employing approximately 71,000 people.
The company also has a presence in Asia. CRH’s American depositary shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Energy and Japan’s international cooperation agency JICA plan to strengthen cooperation in the supply of equipment for rapid repairs and mobile solutions to strengthen the energy resilience of frontline regions. This was discussed during a meeting between Ukrainian Energy Minister Svetlana Grinchuk and JICA Chief Representative in Ukraine Osamu Hattori on Wednesday.
‘I am pleased to welcome Osamu Hattori, Chief Representative of the JICA Office in Ukraine, to the ministry. This is Mr. Osamu’s first visit since his appointment. Therefore, we updated the current areas of cooperation with JICA and identified priorities,’ Hrynchuk wrote on her Facebook page.
She informed her colleague about the agreements reached with Kenji Yamada, Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, during her participation in the G7 Energy Ministers’ Summit in Toronto.
‘We discussed vectors for joint work with JICA in this context,’ she noted.
The possibilities for cooperation with Japanese energy companies and Ukraine’s use of Japanese technologies for the development of the energy sector were also discussed.
The minister thanked Japan in particular for supporting Ukraine’s energy sector with equipment, specialised machinery and gabions.
Shareholders of PJSC “Production Association ”Stalkanat” (Odesa) intend to allocate UAH 2 million 86,615 thousand for dividend payments at a rate of UAH 0.01 per share from the 2024 profit.
According to the company’s report in the information disclosure system of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission (NSSMC), an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting is scheduled for November 21 of this year.
This decision was made by the company’s supervisory board on November 4.
There is one item on the agenda: a decision on the payment of dividends. It is proposed to pay dividends from part of the net profit for 2024 in the amount of UAH 2 million 86 thousand 615.06 at the rate of UAH 0.01 per share by direct payment to shareholders by May 21, 2026. The payment will be made directly to the shareholders’ accounts.
As reported, Stalkanat has previously decided several times to pay dividends to shareholders from the 2024 profit.
In 2024, Stalkanat reduced its net profit by 34% compared to the previous year, from UAH 280.060 million to UAH 184.808 million, but increased its net income by 33.3% to UAH 4 billion 436.786 million. Retained earnings for 2024 amounted to UAH 437.815 million.
Stalkanat is one of the largest manufacturers of steel ropes and reinforcement strands in Eastern Europe. It is the leader in the production of metal products in Ukraine.
According to the NDU data for the first quarter of 2025, David Nemirovsky owns 50% of the company’s shares, Anton Mikhalenko (non-resident) – 23.7%, and Maria Kondratyuk – 23.1%. The company previously reported that Vitaliy Dubovich owns 3.199998% of its shares.
The authorized capital of PJSC Stalkanat currently amounts to UAH 35.472 million, with a share par value of UAH 0.17.
Japan’s Suntory Food & Beverage has launched Tokusui under the Tokucha brand, a zero-calorie functional product that claims to help reduce abdominal (visceral) fat in people with high BMI. The product is classified as a “functionally labeled product” (FOSHU/FFC) rather than a medicine.
According to the manufacturer and industry publications, the drink contains the plant polyphenol HMPA (3-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)propionic acid), obtained from the fermentation of rice bran; the label states that the ingredient “helps reduce internal fat in people with high BMI.” The drink is colorless, almost tasteless and odorless, and is available in 600 ml PET bottles.
A number of publications and social media posts refer to the new product as “water with the Ozempic effect,” but the press releases and product pages do not mention GLP-1 or semaglutide analogues. Tokusui is positioned as an over-the-counter functional beverage, not a medical weight loss product.
The Tokucha line is Japan’s most recognizable brand of beverages with “fat” claims; the introduction of “water” (rather than tea) expands the audience due to its neutral taste. The ingredient HMPA has already appeared in the group’s products (including claims about reducing visceral fat), which is also reflected in online retail listings.
The fruit harvest in the 2025 season is about 60% of the pre-war level, and fruit storage facilities are loaded at 50% of pre-war volumes, so consumers should not expect the low fruit prices that existed before the war, said Taras Minko, head of the Ukrsadprom association.
“When fruit cost pennies, it was good for consumers, but for the industry itself, it was a huge minus, as it led to the bankruptcy of enterprises. If this trend had continued to this day, there would be no orchards left in Ukraine. We would be importing Polish, German, and other apples at European prices, which currently stand at EUR 2.603 per 1 kg,” he said at the Agro2Food exhibition.
The head of the industry association explained that low fruit prices in the pre-war period were due to high orchard productivity and intensive industrial horticulture in Ukraine.
According to him, 2022 was a lost production season for Ukrainian horticulture. Part of Ukraine was occupied, and a number of fruit storage facilities and horticultural farms were destroyed and looted.
“The main factors driving up fruit prices in recent years have been the cost of energy, labor shortages, and labor costs. There is a shortage of people—they are leaving the country. Those who remain want to work less and earn more. The discrepancy between wages and productivity is currently incomparable,” Minko emphasized.
He added that 250 people are needed to harvest a 25-hectare orchard. As a result, in 2022, many enterprises harvested 30% of their crops, in 2024 – 60%, and the current situation is no better.
In addition, according to the head of Ukrsadprom, a significant amount of fruit storage capacity has been destroyed in Ukraine. As an example, he cited statistics from association members who collectively cultivate 10,000 hectares of orchards. Before the war, they had about 110-120 thousand tons of storage in refrigerators.
“Currently, about 60% remains (of fruit storage facilities – IF-U). Some have closed, and some have lost their apple harvest due to climate change. This season, refrigerators with a capacity of about 50-60 thousand tons are in use,” Minko stated.
He noted that Ukraine currently lacks a culture of consuming jams and preserves, which hinders the development of the processing industry. At the same time, he predicts that in the next five years, Ukraine will see a boom in the construction of processing enterprises specializing in the manufacture of such products.
“If you look at today’s market, those who will look at such processing will have great prospects regardless of the number of enterprises existing today. While our parents were busy making preserves, our children will buy ready-made products. Therefore, this is a very promising and interesting industry, which will boom in 3-5-7 years,” concluded the head of Ukrsadprom.
High prices for berries in the 2025 season were caused by spring frosts, which damaged 20-50% of the crop in a number of regions of Ukraine, as well as global market conditions, said Taras Bashtannik, president of the Ukrainian Fruit and Vegetable Association (UFVA).
“If we talk about prices in 2025, losses for all major berry items ranged from 20-50%, primarily due to spring frosts. All major exporting countries of the main items – strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and cherries – also suffered crop losses,” he said at the Agro2Food exhibition.
The head of the association noted that high product prices allowed producers to compensate for the final financial result.
Bashkanik recalled that during the years of war, Ukrainian berry farming lost a lot of production areas, in particular in the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions, where early berries were grown.
“We can only state that, for example, from 2022 to the present, many perennial plantations have been planted, including 3,800 hectares under the state grant program. And without state assistance, we are talking about 4,500-5,000 hectares. In total, berry growing is currently carried out on 17-20 thousand hectares,” said the head of the UPOA.
According to the expert’s estimate, 95% of all raspberries grown in Ukraine are currently processed, mainly for freezing. At the same time, 95% of this product is exported.
“From 2017 to 2025, Ukraine has gone from being a net importer or having a zero import-export balance of frozen raspberries to becoming the largest exporter of frozen raspberries in Europe,” said Bashtannik.
According to his information, no more than 5% of cultivated blueberries in Ukraine are processed. The rest is mostly exported fresh for economic reasons. However, there is a rapid global trend in this crop: in the US, 50% of blueberries are processed, and in Europe, 30%. In Ukraine, this figure is approaching 30%.
In Ukraine, 25-30% of the gross harvest of garden strawberries is processed. Almost the entire volume of processed products remains in Ukraine for domestic consumption.
“Unfortunately, we have to admit that Ukraine, as a producer and exporter of frozen strawberries, has no place in Europe and the world, given the costs and prices offered by Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia, and China,” said the expert.
Speaking about the production of jams and preserves, Bashtannik noted that craft production dominates this segment. Its products are sufficient to meet the needs of HoReCa, while retail mostly covers the needs of Ukrainians through imports. The production of several powerful domestic players is not enough to meet the needs of supermarket shoppers.
“If we don’t take into account any black swans that may or may not appear, the expectations for 2026 in the industry are positive. Ukraine will continue to increase its presence in the European market for fresh and processed berries. Despite the labor shortage, we look more attractive in terms of cost compared to European countries. Therefore, we will take market share from countries that have traditionally dominated the European market. These are Poland and Serbia, first and foremost,” summarized the head of the UPOA.
