OKKO Group helps farmers overcome the lack of bank financing

Despite the introduction of quarantine in Ukraine and the slowdown in economic activity, OKKO Group holding continues to develop its forward program to support agricultural producers. From the middle of March to the beginning of April, the number of contracts with agricultural holdings increased by about 60% compared to the same period last year.

“Sowing is now on the agenda in the agricultural sector. This is one of the two peaks of the financial burden on the industry, but in the current difficult situation in the country, many farmers are already beginning to experience a lack of bank financing. Especially in the segment of medium and small business,” explains the General Director of Agriculture direction of OKKO Group Oleksandr Nikolenko. “The forward program is a successful alternative here. We provide fuel, mineral fertilizers, other material and technical resources, or simply funds not on bail of their property, but on bail of the future harvest. So, to some extent we share the risks with agricultural producers, as well as provide them with guaranteed sales.”

At the beginning of 2020, the agro-direction of OKKO Group has completed three full seasons. Each season, the number of applications for participation in the forward program has approximately doubled. Last year, about 400 appeals were received from farmers, for which they received more than 1 billion UAH in funds, material and technical resources. Most of the participants in the OKKO forward program are small and medium-sized farms with lands from 500 to 30 thousand hectares.