Ukraine is seeing a steady trend toward reducing acreage for grain crops in favor of oilseeds, driven by a significant difference in their profit margins, said Maksym Kharchenko, an analyst at the information and analytical agency “UkrAgroConsult.”
“The profitability of wheat production, and of grains in general, is currently lower than that of oilseeds. This trend has been clearly evident over the past few seasons. While before the full-scale invasion, the area under wheat was significantly larger than that under sunflowers, the situation has changed since 2023: sunflower crops in Ukraine have become more stable and extensive than grain crops,” he said during the Black Sea Grain.Kyiv conference on Wednesday.
According to UkrAgroConsult, the profitability of wheat cultivation in the current season is less than 30%, while for sunflowers this figure reaches about 50%. The profitability of other oilseed crops—rapeseed and soybeans—remains at a similarly high level.
The analyst emphasized that despite the loss of some territories, the area under oilseed crops has not only recovered but, in some segments, has exceeded pre-war levels. This reflects farmers’ strategic shift away from grains in favor of more profitable crops.
According to the infographic, the crop mix of major export crops in Ukraine is shifting in line with profitability indicators. Until 2022, wheat led in terms of acreage, but its unprofitability—at -14.9% in 2022 and -1.8% in 2023—forced farmers to rethink their priorities. The graph shows a so-called “inflection point” in the 2022/23 season, after which sunflowers finally surpassed wheat. Currently, it offers the highest profitability at 48%, while the profitability of wheat and corn stands at only 26% and 23%, respectively, which serves as an incentive for farmers to further expand the acreage under oilseed crops.
“We are seeing an increase in production across all oilseed crops. In particular, we expect the sunflower harvest (in the 2026/2027 season – IF-U) to grow to 13.7 million tons due to better yields and increased acreage,“ forecasts ”UkrAgroConsult.”
Purchase prices for sunflower seeds in Ukraine rose by 500 UAH/ton over the week and currently stand at 31,000–32,000 UAH/ton (or $620–640 per ton excluding VAT for 50% oil content) delivered to the plant, according to the Ukrainian Electronic Grain Exchange.
Analysts noted that the positive trend is driven by a $5 per ton increase in the price of Ukrainian sunflower oil—to $1,295–1,305 (delivery to Black Sea ports)—amid rising demand from the biofuel industry.
At the same time, oil is a global growth driver, with prices exceeding $100 per barrel following U.S. President Donald Trump’s televised address. The promise to end the war with Iran within two to three weeks failed to meet analysts’ expectations of an immediate cessation of attacks and a shift to negotiations, keeping energy prices at high levels.
“Processors continue to actively build up sunflower seed stocks amid increased sales by farmers, hoping for further growth in sunflower oil prices following other vegetable oils in the near future. At the same time, demand for meal has not yet increased, as feed grain prices remain stable at low levels, and South America is increasing its supply of soybean meal,” exchange experts said.
According to experts, due to low processing rates in the first half of the season, as of March 1, sunflower stocks in Ukraine stood at 3.5 million tons, which is 1.4% higher than last year’s figure. This will allow for an increase in production rates, full utilization of plant capacity before the start of the rapeseed season in July, and taking advantage of favorable global market conditions.
At the same time, competition from South America is expected to intensify in April, as buyers actively shift their focus to the new harvest. As of March 27, Argentina had already harvested 61% of its sunflower acreage and is increasing exports to the EU. In Brazil, 75% of the soybean acreage has been harvested (compared to 82% last year), and the export forecast for March stands at 16 million tons, compared to 10.7 million tons in February.
According to the Ukroliyaprom association, sunflower oil production in Ukraine for the 2025/2026 marketing year is projected at 4.6 million tons, which is 10% less than the previous season’s figure. Exports may decline by 6.4% to 4.4 million tons amid the lowest sunflower yield in the last 10 years. At the same time, foreign exchange earnings from exports are rising due to favorable global prices.
Sunflower prices in Ukraine rose by 500 UAH per week
In the 2026 season, the Agrain agricultural holding increased its spring crop acreage by 1.23 times compared to 2025—to over 33,000 hectares.
According to a statement by the agriholding’s press service on Facebook, corn and sunflowers will remain the main crops in the planting mix. The area planted with corn will nearly double compared to 2025 levels, reaching over 25,000 hectares. The expansion of this crop will occur primarily in the Chernihiv, Cherkasy, and Zhytomyr regions.
At the same time, the company will reduce the area under sunflowers by nearly 39%—to 8,000 hectares—due to crop rotation requirements and consideration of climatic risks.
The crop mix will also retain 2,000 hectares of niche crops, including coriander, flax, and lentils. The company noted that these are used to improve crop rotation and restore soil fertility.
Agrain attributed the changes in its production plans to a combination of market priorities—specifically, rising demand for corn—as well as agronomic factors, such as stable yields and moisture levels.
Agrain is engaged in the cultivation and storage of grain and oilseed crops, as well as livestock farming. Prior to the full-scale Russian invasion, the agricultural holding comprised 11 agricultural enterprises. It cultivated approximately 110,000 hectares in the Zhytomyr, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Odesa, and Cherkasy regions.
The holding’s owner is SAS Investcompagnie (France).
The agricultural holding “TAS Agro” increased its sunflower acreage to 24,000 hectares and its corn acreage to 9,800 hectares for the 2026 season, the company announced on its Facebook page.
“This decision is primarily due to the declining economic attractiveness of certain crops and competition from more profitable segments within the production structure. In the 2026 season, we are focusing on a more diversified crop structure and crops with more predictable economics of cultivation,” the press service quoted Vladimir Shil, chief agronomist at TAS Agro, as saying.
According to the report, sunflower acreage increased by 54.8%, and corn acreage by 28.9%. At the same time, the largest reduction occurred in soybeans—by 65.8%, to 5,200 hectares. Due to unfavorable weather in the fall of 2025, the area under winter wheat decreased by 8.7% to 21,000 hectares, while winter rapeseed plantings expanded to 15,300 hectares (+9.3%). In 2026, the agricultural holding will introduce oilseed flax (140 ha) into its crop structure for the first time and will maintain 165 ha of production areas for industrial hemp.
The TAS Agro agricultural holding was established in 2014. Its land bank includes 88,000 hectares in the Chernihiv, Sumy, Kyiv, Vinnytsia, Kirovohrad, and Mykolaiv regions. It specializes in crop production; the agriholding’s elevator capacity totals approximately 250,000 tons. The livestock business consists of a herd of 5,500 head of cattle, of which 2,500 head are milking cows.
The agricultural holding is part of the “TAS” group, founded in 1998. Its business interests span the financial sector (banking and insurance segments) and the pharmaceutical sector, as well as industry, real estate, and venture projects.
The founder of TAS and the beneficiary of the TAS Agro agricultural holding is Serhiy Tihipko.
Sunflower oil exports from Ukraine in the 2025/2026 marketing year (MY) are projected at 4.1 million tons. This is 14% less than the previous season’s figure, the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club (UAC) reported on Facebook.
According to analysts, the main reason for the decline was a reduction in raw material volumes. Specifically, in the current season, the total area planted with sunflowers was 5.2 million hectares, which is 2.6% less than in the previous MY. Difficult weather conditions, particularly a lack of rainfall, led to a decrease in yield to 2.0 t/ha.
“As a result, the seed harvest is expected to reach 10.1 million tons. This is 10.6% less than in the previous marketing year and 13.5% below the average for the last five years,” experts predict.
Due to the smaller harvest, UCAB estimates processing volumes at 10.1 million tons, meaning oil production will drop by 13.1% to 4.3 million tons. Meanwhile, the domestic market will consume only about 240,000 tons of the product.
“Domestic consumption in Ukraine continues to decline due to the partial occupation of territories, forced population migration, and military operations. Therefore, the vast majority of the product will be exported,” explained UCAB, noting that in 2025, sunflower oil alone generated the highest foreign exchange revenue among the entire agricultural sector.
The association expressed confidence that despite the negative production trends, Ukrainian sunflower oil retains its position as a key export commodity in the EU, Middle East, and Asian markets.
Agrotrade agricultural holding has formed the structure of cultivated areas for 2026 and allocated the largest shares to sunflower (28.6%) and corn (24.9%), the agricultural group reported on Facebook.
“The changes in the crop structure are dictated by both economic calculations and the results of the previous season: niche crops — flax and winter peas — have been added, the area under soybeans has been reduced, and sunflower and corn crops have been increased. The priority is high-margin crops, in particular sunflower and winter rapeseed,” the agricultural holding emphasized.
It is noted that the crop structure also includes winter wheat (19.3%), winter rapeseed (13.8%), soybeans (7.3%), and flax (3.3%). Smaller areas are allocated to winter barley (1.6%), winter peas (0.7%), and industrial hemp (0.4%).
In 2026, the agricultural holding plans to increase the average yield by 0.17–0.79 t/ha, depending on the crop, by updating its approaches to plant protection and nutrition. Agrotrade will also continue to transform its production processes: it will switch to direct sowing, Strip-Till technology, and soil biologization, abandoning plowing.
The Agrotrade Group of Companies is a vertically integrated holding company covering the entire agro-industrial cycle (production, processing, storage, and trade in agricultural products). It cultivates over 70,000 hectares of land. Its main crops are sunflower, corn, winter wheat, soybeans, and rapeseed. It has its own network of elevators with a one-time storage capacity of 570,000 tons.
The group also produces hybrid seeds of corn, sunflower, barley, and winter wheat. In 2014, a seed plant with a capacity of 20,000 tons of seeds per year was built on the basis of the Kolos seed farm (Kharkiv region).
The founder of Agrotrade is Vsevolod Kozhemyako.
