The most recent poll released by the Rating Group shows that 53% of Ukrainians oppose lifting the archaic moratorium on farmland sales, which has been in place in Ukraine since 2001.
Only 31% of 2,000 respondents supported the initiative, according to the poll, conducted between Oct. 24 and Oct. 27.
According to Alex Lissitsa, president of the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club, such statistics simply reflect that most people don’t understand what the land market actually means.
“We have a society of stereotypes,” Lissitsa said on Oct.29 in an interview with the Liga news agency.
The poll also showed that 77% of respondents don’t own land, and among those who do, 17% rent to tenants and only 6% cultivate their land for agriculture. Only a quarter of respondents said they want to use their land for farming.
The two major reasons why most land is uncultivated, according to owners, are “not enough money” and “poor health.”
For one hectare of leased land, usually rented to Ukraine’s agrarian giants, almost 30% of owners said they earn a modest $40-120 annually. Others do only a bit better: 23% earn $120-200 and 21% earn more than $200.
The rest earn less than $40, or even nothing. As a result, 73% believe that the rental price is unfair.
By comparison, the average price to rent one hectare is 791 euros in the Netherlands, 235 euros in Poland and 240 euros in Bulgaria, according to Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU within the European Commission.
According to the Ukrainian Stock Breeders Association, the price of land for rent in Ukraine should be $400-600 per hectare.
Responding to a question about the best time to launch the land market in Ukraine, almost 30% said never, while 22% want it as soon as possible.
According to Lissitsa, it is difficult to predict what will happen when the market opens.
“The (Ukrainian) authorities have to talk about goals, risks and all pros and cons of the land market. This has not been done,” Lissitsa said.
