45 agricultural companies collectively control about 4,1 mln ha of agricultural land. Their total revenue exceeds $10,8 billion. We deliberately do not rank the companies by the size of the land bank, because this asset is not their property.
Another thing is money gained by the companies. It is honest money obtained due to skilful use of the leased land. Our rating includes vertically integrated holdings whose business structure includes several interrelated divisions: from crop growing to the production of finished products and their sale. We have not included subsidiaries of multinational companies and processors in the rating (who do not produce the primary products themselves). We ranked the companies in terms of the revenue obtained in 2015. The data were taken from the companies’ reports or received in reply to our request. A number of companies did not provide the information due to the privacy policy or inability to show figures before their official publication in the end of spring. The revenue of such enterprises was evaluated by us based on the available data and comparative methods of revenue assessment. These companies are marked with an asterisk in the rating.
№ 1 Кernel
Owner: Andrey Verevskiy
Revenues: $2,329.5 mln
Segment: oil, grain crops
This year Agroholding of Andrey Verevskiy feels as confident as in 2015. In the second quarter of 2016 marketing year (started in July 2015) the largest producer of oil in Ukraine increased its profit by 2.7 times, up to $ 117,750,000. Seven plants of the company processed about 3 million tons of sunflower seeds. Last year was successful for the holding, it’s debts declined by nearly 37%, to $ 465,8 million.
Holding of Verevskiy is actively looking for new ways of development, as well as markets. For example, Kernel has already received a permission to export corn to China. In 2016, the company started producing rapeseed oil at its two factories. Kernel actively invests in technologies. Now it upgrades Transbulkterminal and two elevators in the Chernihiv region. However the company said goodbye to its elevator in Nikolaev and sold it for $ 993,000. Verevskiy is also negotiating the sale of two oil-extraction plants in Russia. At the same time the agricultural holding increases its capacities in Ukraine. Late in February 2016, Kernel bought Ellada factory in Kirovograd region for nearly $ 96 million, which formerly belonged to Creative Company, and was transferred as the pledge under credits to the governmental Ukrgasbank. Kernel will pay this amount within the next five years”, – reported in the holding. The capacity of Ellada oil extraction plant is 560,000 tons of sunflower seeds per year.
Having the land bank of 390,000 hectares Kernel is one of three largest agricultural holdings in Ukraine. So far, the company decided to suspend the increase of its land bank and to pay more attention to improving its efficiency on existing fields. The main crops are wheat, corn and sunflower.
In 2015 Kernel increased sales of grain by 12% compared to 2014 to the record volume of 4,744 million tons. Mr.Verevskiy is sure that this year his company will export 4.5 million tons of grain. However, the holding has to face losses, in January of 2016 the court ordered Kernel to pay $ 2.4 million of compensation under the legal preceding about delivery of contaminated sunflower oil to EU in April 2008.
№ 2 Nibulon
Owner: Aleksey Vadaturskiy
Revenues: $1,946. mln
Segment: plant growing, grain trade
Nibulon owned by Aleksey Vadaturskiy is not only one of the largest exporters of Ukrainian agricultural products, but also one of the most efficient crop plants. Nibulon farms 82,500 hectares of land in 12 regions of Ukraine. The company specializes in the production of wheat of I-II classes. In 2015, the company collected in total 310,000 tons of grains and oilseeds, the average yield of early grain group was 43.3 cen/ha. Nibulon does not save on agricultural equipment. Last year the holding invested in its vehicle fleet renovation about $ 7 million. NIBULON continues to increase its exports. In 2014/15 marketing year it sent 4.2 million tons of grain to foreign markets, and in 2015/16 marketing year the company plans to increase the export of grain by 18%, up to 5 million tons.
The company works with 64 states in the Middle East, Europe and Africa. In 2015, Nibulon started exporting grains and oilseeds to China, Thailand and Mexico. Such export volumes is achieved due to the holding’s own fleet. The company is also building a transshipment terminal on the Southern Bug River. The investments in the project will amount to about UAH 450 million. By this year summer the terminal should start operation. The new facility will allow the simultaneous storage of 76,000 tons of grain, and the capacity for shipping on water transport will be 12,000 tons per day. NIBULON also provides transportation services to other traders. In 2014/15 marketing year the company transported over 1.4 million tons by its shipping vessels. It is expected that after completing the investment project for Dnieper and Southern Bug dredging, the annual volume of freight traffic on these rivers reaches 3 million tons of grain. This will allow discharging about 46,000 rail carriages or about 100,000 trucks per year. Mr. Vadaturskiy actively attracts international funding for the agricultural holding development. In the summer 2015, the EBRD provided a syndicated loan of $ 130 million to the company for investment projects to develop the export as well as logistics and grain storage infrastructure.
№3 MHP
Owner: Yuriy Kosyuk
Revenues: $1,183.3 mln
Segment: poultry, plant growing, meat processing
The year 2015 was not the most successful for Mironovsky Khleboproduct agricultural holdings and Yuri Kosyuk. The company’s revenue decreased by 14%, to $ 1.2 billion. Partially, it was caused by the national currency devaluation. The company also reduced its exports by 6% among other reasons due to the Russian market closure. During the last year Mr. Kosyuk was trying to agree on restructuring the Eurobond to total amount of $ 750 million. In March 2016, 91% of holders of Mironovsky Khleboproduct securities agreed to the new terms and conditions. It will help to minimize the impact of the exchange rate fluctuations on the company’s operations, although it will cost Mr. Kosyuk extra $ 8.5 million.
In 2015, Mironovsky Khleboproduct successfully exchanged assets with Agro-Culture, Russian company. Mr. Kosyuk exchanged 40,000 hectares of the land and granary with the capacity of 150,000 tons in the Voronezh region for 60,000 ha of land and granary for 90,000 tons of Agriculture in Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Ternopil regions. Mr. Kosyuk has already invested UAH 20 million into a new division. The holding continues to develop. “This year we plan to complete several projects that will allow us to increase exports and to optimize costs by providing the company with the hatching eggs of our own production”, – said Mr.Kosyuk. To achieve this, Mironovsky Khleboproduct will increase the production of Peremoga Nova poultry farm. In 2016 due to investments made into the expansion of Myronovska poultry farm and Orel-Leader poultry factory, the agricultural holding will increase the production of chicken by 40,000 tons. In spring, Mironovsky Khleboproduct together with its partners launches its own poultry meat processing facility in the Netherlands. Mr. Kosyuk intends to invest $ 110 million in the development of his holding this year. Mironovsky Khleboproduct will also expand markets and increase exports including exports to traditional areas: the CIS countries, the Middle East, the European Union. In the end of 2015 Mr.Kosyuk agreed to supply about 10,000 tons of poultry meat to Saudi Arabia market. During next two years, the businessman also wants to increase the land bank of the company by at least 50,000 ha up to 420,000 ha.
№4 UkrLandFarming
Owner: Oleg Bakhmatyuk
Revenues: $954.8 mln*
Segment: eggs, egg products, grain
Despite all best efforts of Oleg Bakhmatyuk, the agricultural holding owner, to restore full operation of UkrLandFarming, it failed to get profit last year. Its debt increased in 2015 to $ 1.56 billion. During last two years, it has been going through hard times: due to the conflict in Donbass Region and annexation of the Crimea the company has lost several businesses and has lost some of its land bank. “Two poultry farms were left in the Crimea, and we have frozen them, as well as 13,000 hectares of the land,” said Igor Petrashko, the Deputy General Director of UkrLandFarming. In total ULF leases 654,000 hectares and is the largest agricultural holding of the country by the size of the land bank. The value of the company was affected by the devaluation. In 2015, Mr.Bakhmatyuk managed to agree on restructuring of Avangard company debts. The payment of $ 200 million under Eurobonds was extended by the creditors until October 2018. Mr. Bakhmatyuk did not stop investing in the company’s development. He has invested $ 100.3 million in the construction of elevators. In 2016, ULF is going to start building of the port. The investment in the project will amount to about $ 1 billion. The businessman is looking for a partner to implement it. It is assumed that the port transshipment capacity will exceed 15 million tons. However, before he gets engaged in large-scale projects, Mr.Bakhmatyuk has to settle the issue with Nibulon Company. Its owner Alex Vadaturskiy required payment over $ 17.5 million. Rise Company owed this amount to NIBULON since 2010. Then it was owned by businessman Vitaly Tsekhmistrenko. After the introduction of export quotas on grain trading, it has not delivered 158,000 tons of corn to the trader. Rise joined Bakhmatyuk’s holding company only in 2011. However, this fact did not prevent the International Organization for Grain and Feed Trade (GAFTA) from declaring the Rise default, because it failed to implement the court decision in favor of Nibulon S.A. The Kyiv Court of Appeal also made a decision in favor of NIBULON. UkrLandFarming does not acknowledge the debt to NIBULON. Moreover, Rise did not receive any prepayments from the latter. Mr.Bakhmatyuk is not going to give up, and is ready to continue the proceedings.
№5 ViOil
Owner: viktor ponomarchuk
Revenues: $373.3 mln
Segment: oil
Being one of top three largest Ukrainian producers and exporters of sunflower oil, ViOil group plans to expand seriously its production this year. It is going to construct a new plant to process soya and rape with the capacity of 1,100 tons and 1,500 tons per day, respectively, on the territory of Chernovtsy oil and fat plant. “By May 2016 the company will also increase the capacity of Vinnitsa oil and fat processing plant in regard to the sunflower seeds by 600 tons per day up to 2,800 tons”, said Victor Ponomarchuk, ViOil owner. This is the most powerful company in the Ukrainian oil and fat industry in terms of processing on one platform. Under the sunflower seeds deficit the company has provided for the opportunity to process three types of oil crops: sunflower, rape and soybeans. This allows full loading of its capacities. ViOil gives another part of purchased primary products to other plants on tolling scheme. The company is the Ukrainian leader in production of rapeseed oil, but there are small amounts so far: ViOil processes approximately 100,000 tons of rapeseed per a year.
The company exports almost all the production. The main ViOil markets are the CIS, Middle East, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Europe. Ukrainian producers have to compete with palm oil in foreign markets. It is not easy to substitute it, because it is a very big production, and its cost is relatively low. Recently, the group began to supply refined rapeseed oil to China. It is possible to store 200,000 tons of oilseeds at the company’s elevators at the same time. Mr.Ponomarchuk has always been cautious about borrowings; ViOil has never had a high debt load. One of the businessman’s rules is: one should set up a business that will work better tomorrow as compared to this day. “It’s impossible to works without credits in our business. But there is a happy medium, and you have to feel it, – assures the owner of ViOil. – The borrowing is effective in the growing markets, but in crisis debts often become a heavy burden for companies”.
№6 Аstarta
Owner: Victor Ivanchik and Valeriy Korotkov
Revenues: $347.5 mln
Segment: sugar production, milk production and grain growing
Astarta Agro Holding continues to export the most part of its products. In 2015, under the quota for duty-free import of sugar in the EU, the company exported 10,000 tons of sweet sand to the market. It also started to export corn to China. This country has become a major buyer of soybean oil for Astarta. The company grows grains and oilseeds at its 245 000 hectares. “In 2015, we focused on increasing of operational efficiency. The complicated agricultural market conditions required to speed up work on reducing the cost and applying the best technology of production “, says Victor Ivanchik, the owner and the general director of Astarta. The total investment in the company development in 2015 amounted to about EUR 24 million. Mr.Ivanchik also intends to develop the production of soybeans and soybean oil. Astarta attracted $ 35 million from IFC in October 2015 to implement this project.
№7 Allseeds Group
Owner: Vyacheslav Petrishche
Revenues: $294 mln*
Segment: oil
In 2010, due to the disagreements with partners, Vyacheslav Petrishche was forced to sell Allseeds company, which he had been building for 15 years, to Andrew Verevskiy, his competitor and the owner of Kernel agricultural holding. However, Mr. Petrishche did not give up and recreated a company with the same name. In 2015 Allseeds launched a new oil extraction plant in the port of Yuzhny with the capacity of 700,000 tons of sunflower seeds per year. Investments in the project amounted to $ 200 million. The businessman also plans to build a port terminal with handling capacity of 6 million tons per year and the soybean processing plant with the capacity of 5,000 tons per day. By 2021, Mr.Petrishche plans to invest about $ 400 million in the development of the company. His goal is to have a company with the capital of $ 1 billion. According to its shareholder, Allseeds capitalization reached $ 350 million now. All products of the company will be exported. This year Allseeds expects to increase exports by 75%. “We are thinking about opening representative offices in India, China and Iran. These markets offer tremendous opportunities and consumption is growing in these countries”, says Mr.Petrishche.
№8 Аgroprosperis
Owner: NCH Capital (usa)
Revenues: $293.1 mln*
Segment: grain growing
Agroprosperis Group of companies, which is managed by NCH Capital investment fund, gathered 1.8 million tons of grains and oilseeds in 2015. The company priority is corn, sunflower, wheat, rape and soybeans. Over the past year NCH Capital invested over $ 25 million in the group development in Ukraine, $ 14 million of which were spent for the construction and equipping of Zhmerinka elevator with the capacity of 40,000 tons. In the near future, Agroprosperis will focus on the delivery of seeds and crop protection products for farmers, and also will have forward contracts with foreign traders. “Last autumn Agroprosperis presented affiliate platform for national producers. We include small and medium-sized grain producers in our supply chain before and after growth: first, we sell them seeds and plant protection products, and then we buy grain and ship it for export “, says Igor Osmachko, General Director of Agroprosperis. The company does not plan to increase the land bank. Now Agroprosperis controls 430,000 hectares in Kharkov, Sumy, Vinnitsa and Khmelnitsky regions.
№9 T.B.Fruit
Owner: Тaras Barschovskiy
Revenues: $219.1 mln
Segment: production of juice and juice concentrate
Being the largest producer of juice concentrates in Ukraine, T.B.Fruit Company continues its expansion in the foreign market. In the autumn of 2015, it launched a new plant in Moldova with the capacity of 200 tons of apples per day. T.B.Fruit already has companies in Poland: T.B.Fruit Dwikozy and T.B.Fruit Annopol, as well as Tank Trans Polska transportation company. The company’s products are sold in the EU, as well as in Canada, the US and China. The search for new directions for exports is partly associated with the Russian ban on import of Ukrainian goods. “The Russian Federation is a big market, we sold 20,000 tons of juice concentrate annually there”, says Taras Barschovsky, the owner T.B.Fruit. “But we are actively developing new markets. Today, the company’s portion in the juice concentrate market in the European Union already makes about 20%, and each 15th bottle of apple juice in the United States is made using our concentrates”. Mr.Barschovskiy owns six factories in Ukraine, as well as the transportation company for liquid cargoes “Tank Trans Ukraine”. T.B.Fruit is engaged in growing of apples, cherries and strawberries.
№10 Ukrprominvest-Agro
Owner: Prime Assets capital Investment FUND»
Revenues: $185.3 MLN
Segment: cultivation of sugar beet, wheat and oilseed; sugar production; wheat processing (flour production)
One of key business of Ukrprominvest Agro is the cultivation of sugar beet and sugar production. Last year, two plants of the group (Kryzhopolsky and Gaysinsky) produced 195,000 tons of this product, which allowed the company to occupy the second place among Ukrainian sugar producers (with the market share of 14%). When establishing the holding, it was assumed that these two plants will only provide for Roshen Corporation factories. However, the share of these enterprises in Ukrprominvest Agro revenue makes 15% now. The company also cultivates wheat and oilseed on its 122,000 hectares of land. Ukrprominvest Agro is developing dairy and meat business. A herd of cattle has 5,200 heads, and the pig farm grows 21,000 pigs per year. The group also has a mill complex and elevators. In 2015, Ukrprominvest Agro investments amounted to UAH 374,000,000. The money was mainly spent on the purchase of agricultural machinery.
№11 Promethey
Owner: Rafael Goroyan
Revenues: $150.3 mln
Segment: grain trading
Promethey is one of the largest grain traders in the country, which annually increases its sales. In 2015, the company sold over 0.5 million tons of grains and oilseeds, most part of which was exported. Now Promethey possesses over 20 grain trucks and eight grain elevators with the storage capacity of 400,000 tons in Mykolayiv, Kirovograd and Kiev regions. Rafael Goroyan, the company owner, is completing negotiations on the purchase of another four granaries. The businessman plans to increase the number of elevator complexes up to 50 within five next years. “When we buy grain elevators it is important for us to have logistics convenient for both producer and the buyer. Since setting up the business I am oriented to the manufacturer and move towards it”, says Mr.Goroyan. He compares Promethey with the stock exchange, which offers farmers not only competitive purchase price, but also solutions for storage, refining and transportation of grain. The businessman invests into development only his own funds.
№12 Industrial milk company
Owner: Aleksander Petrov
Revenues: $140.4 mln
Segment: grain growing, storage of grains and oilseeds, dairy cattle husbandry
Industrial Milk Company is one of public agricultural companies. A quarter of its shares have been listed at the Warsaw Stock Exchange for five years. This is the third large-scale business project of its owner and Aleksander Petrov, the Chairman of the Board of Directors. Previous 10 years Mr.Petrov was engaged in the production of cheese and owned Cheese Club corporation, whose share in the Ukrainian cheese market was 11%. In 2007, he sold his cheese business to Russian investors and concentrated on dairy farming. At the same time, the businessman bought several crop farms in Poltava, Sumy and Chernigov regions. Today IMC farms about 137,000 hectares. Distance between fields belonging to the company is less than 20 km. This helps to reduce costs and to increase operational efficiency. The company’s capacity for storage of grains and oilseeds is more than 0.5 million tons. The IMC farms provide over 19,000 tons of milk per year. Mr.Petrov is constantly investing into the renovation of production facilities and agricultural equipment. In March, the company acquired six large-sized Fend tractors to total amount of $ 1.3 million. It is planned to pay back the investment within five years.
№13 Аgromars
Owner: Eugene and Marina segal
Revenues: $136.5 MLN*
Segment: poultry
Being the second largest poultry producer in Ukraine with the market share of about 14%, Agromars Complex by Eugene Segal (TM Gavrilіvskі Kurchata) increased its production and export in 2015. In summer it finally completed its reconstruction of Kurganskiy Broiler factory in Kharkov. Investments in the project amounted to Euros 35 million. The businessman hopes to increase the stock of broiler chickens up to 1 million. The additional capacity will allow Agromars to increase exports to EU countries, Middle East and Africa. Obtaining of permission to send the chicken in Belarus and Kazakhstan was an excellent incentive for the development of export directions. In February this year, Ukraine has received a permit from the Ministry of Environment and Water to supply chicken to the United Arab Emirates. The list of companies that have received the right to export poultry meat in the country, together with Mironovsky Khleboproduct holding company by Yuri Kosyuk, included Agromars. The main Agromars manufacturing facilities are located in the village of Gavrilovka (Kiev region). The company also has two feed processing plants and a grain elevator.
№14 Globino
Owner: Aleksander Kuzminskiy
Revenues: $134.6 mln*
Segment: pig breeding, meat processing
Globino is a remarkable example of what the enterprising owner can make with a small slaughterhouse in the Poltava region within 18-year period of time. Today it is one of the country’s largest vertically integrated companies with a closed production cycle: from breeding to the delivery of finished meat and dairy products to retailers. Globino Group includes meat processing plant, pig breeding farm, meat and diary complex, creamery, a crop enterprise, a trading house and even a training center, where personal growth is practiced using Mark Palchikis system. According to Aleksander Kuzminskiy, the owner of Globino, “practice has become a part of the corporate culture of the holding”. Globino share in the market of meat products make about 10%. Meat Processing Plant of Kuzminskiy produces daily about 100 tons of meat products from chilled meat. Pork and beef for processing are received from its own farms. The company refused to manufacture products from the frozen meat.
№15 Аgrotrade
Owner: Vsevolod Kozhemyako
Revenues: $131.5 mln
Segment: crop farming, seed farming, livestock farming, grain export
Now it is time to change for Agrotrade holding by Vsevolod Kozhemyako. In 2015, the company’s revenues declined nearly by three times down to $ 131.5 million. Moreover, about 76% of this amount was provided by trading. But now the businessman decided to focus on crop growing. In the current unsustainable environment this trend remains profitable. The major focus of the company will be on the cultivation of wheat, corn and soybeans. “Within three years, we will almost double our land bank up to 120,000 ha”, says AGROTRADE owner. It won’t be difficult for Kozhemyako to change the strategy, because his company is well systemized and structured. Each procedure is clearly described. In 2015, Agrotrade completed the factory construction in Kharkiv region and the elevator in Chernigov. The businessman has no plans for other large investments.
№16 Ukrainian agrarian investments
Owner: ONEXIM Group
Revenues: $123.3 mln*
Segment: grain growing
The holding was established in 2005 on the initiative of Stephen Jennings the founder of Renaissance Capital, Russian investment company. By 2009, the company had leased 286,000 hectares in 16 regions of Ukraine. However, due to the lack of current assets, it farmed only the fourth part of the land. In summer of the same year, the Ukrainian Agrarian Investments was headedby Alexander Kostenko and the holding began to make profit. The businessman sold the land unsuitable for agriculture, reduced staff and investments per hectare and began to work closely with EBRD. He borrowed funds to buy machinery and started to buy and construct elevators. In 2012 Renaissance came under control of Onexim Group. The market began to talk about the sale of Ukrainian Agrarian Investments, but this never happened. Today, the holding is one of the largest landowners of Ukraine. Its land bank is 234,000 ha, 195,000 of which are cropped by the company. Ukrainian Agrarian Investments uses mini till and no till technology, which allows reduction of costs per hectare.
№17 Pologovskiy oil extraction plant
Owner: «Fonzass ag»
Revenues: $122 mln*
Segment: oil
Pologovskiy oil extraction plant is located in Zaporozhie region. This is one of the oldest and largest companies in the industry. It has been producing vegetable oils and oilseed coarse meals since 1974. The company has built up a complete production cycle from acceptance, storage, pretreatment of seeds to complete cleaning and subsequent packaging of the obtained oil. The company employs 891 people. Today, the Oil Extraction Plant can process up to 2,000 tons of sunflower seeds per day. The Company sells sunflower oil under “Slavіya,” “Smachna Kraplya” brands in Ukraine. The finished products of Pologovskiy extraction plant is exported to the United States, Europe, Asia, the Baltic States, Turkey, India, Israel. The company makes extensive use of alternative sources of energy. It almost completely refused from the natural gas consumption and saves electricity consumption by heating the industrial premises with waste products.
№18 UkrAgroCom & Hermes-Trading companies
Owner: Anatoliy and Sergey Kuzmenko, Yuriy Skichko
Revenues: $112 mln*
Segment: wheat and oilseed growing, livestock breeding, grain trading
UkrAgroCom was founded in 2000 by Sergey Kuzmenko, the father of the current head of Kirovograd regional state administration, based on farms cultivating 5,000 hectares in the village of Golovkovka. Today, it is a farming corporation cultivating 75,000 hectares in Kirovograd and Dnepropetrovsk regions. UkrAgroCom and Hermes Trading specializes in growing and selling of grain and oilseeds, production of compound animal feeding staff, sugar, meat and dairy products. In the next few years, the corporation plans to increase its exports of grains and oilseeds to 2.5 million tons. The group of companies owns Svetlovodsk river terminal and four elevators in the Kirovograd region with total capacity of 353,000 tons. The agroholding plans to increase the number of elevators to ten, as well as to build three new river terminals. Investments into agribusiness will make about $ 300 million. The group also includes Petrikіvske Moloko dairy complex with 5,000 heads of cattle and 11,500 pigs. The complex is capable of processing 70 tons of milk per day. At the end of last year it received the status of stud farm of Holstein cows breeding. Investments in the development of dairy production reached $ 30 million.
№19 Аgrein
Owner: «Аgrein holding limited»
Revenues: $111.8 mln*
Segment: crop farming, dairycattlehusbandry, graintrading
№20 Оliyar
Owner: Irina Zalizna
Revenues: $111.1 mln
Segment: oil
№21 Svarog West Group
Owner: Аleksandr and Sergey Buryak
Revenues: $110 mln
Segment: crop farming
Within 13 years, the agricultural department which provided Shepetovsky sugar plant with its own primary products, turned into one of the most efficient companies in the crop farming. Today Svarog processes 80,000 hectares of leased land in the Khmelnytsky, Chernigovsky and Zhytomirsky regions. The company applies the technology of deep plowing and sowing in strips. According to Andrey Gordeychuk, the Chairman of the Board of Svarog West Group, the holding did not invent anything new but took the Soviet technology as the basis and improved it. Along with it, it upgraded equipment reducing thereby fuel, fertilizer and plant protection products consumption by one third as well as increased productivity by a quarter as compared to the classical technology. The company relies on the cultivation of soybean and winter wheat. For the last five years it gathers the record harvests of these crops. Svarog is also engaged in vegetable production, juice production, seed production, dairy farming. 4,700 people are employed by the company.
№22 Bessarabia-B
Owner: Dmitriy Shederov
Revenues: $96 mln*
Segment: oil
Bessarabia B, Ismail oil extraction plant, has been producing oilseed coarse meal, sunflower oil and rapeseed oil and sunflower husk pellets for 10 years. The share of Bessarabia B in the Ukrainian sunflower oil market does not exceed 2%. The company exports its products to five countries in Europe. The company has a logistics advantage being the access to the port on the Danube River, as well as to the Black Sea ports. The elevator of oil extraction plant can store 30,000 tons of sunflower seed and 10, 000 tons of oilseed coarse meal. The capacity for the granulation sunflower in husk pellets are 130 tons per day. For the last two years the company has been going through hard times. More than one and a half years Bessarabia B has been trying to get VAT reimbursement in the amount of UAH 66 million. As a result, in the spring of 2015, the plant was forced to suspend work. Two weeks later, the State Treasury reimbursed two thirds of the debt to the company. In the near future Bessarabia B plans to increase the volume of sunflower processing up to 1,000 tons per day.
№23 Аgro-Oven
Owner: Victor Zavorotny
Revenues: $91.6 mln*
Segment: meat production, crop growing
Agro Oven share in the broiler meat market is over 5%, and the company is among five largest poultry producers. The company has its own incubator, two meat processing factories and two feed milling plants. The company exports products to the CIS countries and Asia. After receiving the Halal Certificate, the holding will be able to supply poultry meat to the markets of Egypt, Kuwait, and Jordan. A part of Agro Oven products is sold through its own retail Meat House network. Moreover, the company is also engaged in swine breeding and crop growing. The capacity of pig-breeding complex of the agricultural holding is 70,000 animals per year. Victor Zavorotny, the owner, has invested in the development of pig breeding about UAH 22 million. Agro Oven processes 16,000 hectares of land, 700 hectares of which are planted with potatoes. It has its own factory for processing and storage of this product. Almost all the businesses of the agricultural holding are in the Dnepropetrovsk region.
№24 Dniprooliya
Owner:: Ruslan and Olga Evstafevs, Mudgahit and Luytfyu turkkans, Аkhmet Penich
Revenues: $81.5 mln
Segment: oil
Dnіproolіya can be considered as one of the most successful startups in the last decade. It was founded in 2009 by a group of trading companies. By that time, they had been working in the market for seven years and decided finally to acquire their own oil extraction plant. The partners established a new company on the territory of the former housebuilding plant in Krivoy Rog. Some facilities had to be built from the ground up, some they managed to reconstruct and reequip. Investments in the project have already exceeded $ 50 million. Today, the company produces about 12,000 tons of sunflower oil and 40,000 tons of oilseed coarse meal per month. Its own elevators and storage facilities can accommodate up to 40,000 tons of primary products. In the next couple of years, the owners intend to invest about $ 25 million in the construction of the third workshop of the extraction plant and to increase its storage capacity. Today, Dnіproolіya is one of the largest producers and exporters of oil and oilseed coarse meal.
№25 Ovostar Union
Owner: Boris Belikov, Vitaliy Veresenko
Revenues: $75.7 mln
Segment: eggs and egg products
Ovostar Union is the second largest producer of eggs and egg products in Ukraine, which controls 8% of the market. The holding is not going to stop and continues to increase its production. Last year the company completed the construction of four poultry houses, which allowed increasing production of eggs by 15%. In 2015, Ovostar began to export its products to EU countries. The holding also increased its export to the Middle East. This allowed increasing the export by 2.6 times. Ovostar was the first company on the market to offer buyers branded eggs under Yansensvit TM. Now, it is the most recognizable brand in the market. Since 2011, Ovostar Union is listed at the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Now the holding capitalization is $ 145 million. Boris Belikov and Vitaliy Veresenko, founders of the holding, own equal share of the company.
№26 АPK‑Invest
Owner: Boris Kolesnikov
Revenues: $75.3 mln
Segment: pig breeding, crop growing, meat processing
APK Invest owned by Boris Kolesnikov was presented as the biggest innovation project in the agricultural sector of Ukraine. He invested UAH 3.5 billion in its development. Besides pig breeding and meat processing, the company is engaged in crop production, animal feed production and sale of finished products under M’yasna Vesna brand and Kolbaspischeprom through its own retail network.
APK Invest is the largest pork producer in the country, whose share in the market makes over 22%. The company’s herd is over 250,000 heads. APK Invest major production facilities are located in Krasnoarmeyskiy Rayon, Donetsk Region. Despite the proximity to the zone of military conflict, the agricultural holding continues to work. Last year, the company produced 42 thousand tons of meat.
№27 AgroGeneration
Owner: SigmaBleyzer Fund
Revenues: $70.3 mln*
Segment:: grain and oilseed growing, livestock breeding
AgroGeneration Agroholding appeared after the merger of the French company with the same name with Harmelia agricultural holding established by SigmaBleyzer foundation. As a result, the land bank of the merged company reached 120,000 hectares. Its fields are in Sumy, Zhytomyr, Kharkiv, Ternopil and Lviv Regions. AgroGeneration specializes in growing grains and oilseeds. Last year, the company collected more than 280,000 tons of the crops. About 40% of its production is sold on forward contracts. In 2015, AgroGeneration reduced long-term debts and increased the equity capital by issuing OSRANE subordinated convertible bonds. The restructuring allowed the holding to reduce significantly interest costs for the next four years. Due to the emission, the company additionally attracted EUR 3 million from an American investor.
* Data for the last 12 months (as of June 30, 2015).
№28 ТAS Agro
Owner: Sergey Tigipko
Revenues: $69.9 mln
Segment:: crop growing, dairycattlehusbandry
Sergey Tigipko’s holding was created through the merger of two agricultural companies, RoAgro and Tagron, which was caused by economic reasons. “The merger greatly simplified the asset management,” said Dmitry Schultz, TAS Agro Director. “The company has developed a uniform strategy for all processes: production, procurement, sales, logistics, land bank management. Now, the holding farms 88,000 hectares in Vinnitsa, Dnepropetrovsk, Kiev, Kirovograd, Nikolaev and Chernihiv regions. The company grows wheat, soy, corn and sunflower. It owns six elevators with the capacity of over 250,000 tons of wheat. Three dairy farms of TAS Agro have 5,500 heads of cattle including 2,500 of milking cows. The holding produces superior class milk only on its farms. In 2015, it started to export grain to South East Asia markets. TAS Agro plans to increase the land bank to 150,000 hectares. As a part of this strategy, the holding bought Obrіy Ltd with 12,000 ha of land in the Chernihiv region and the elevator complex as well as a number of small farms in the Vinnytsya and Kyiv regions last year.
№29 Мriya agroholding
Owner: Wayluku Ventures Limited
Revenues: $68 mln**
Segment: crop growing, livestock breeding
№30 Аpgk dneprovskaya
Owner: «Wespone Trading Limited»
Revenues: $63.2 mln*
Segment: poultry, crop growing, processing of industrial crops
№31 Аgrospetsservis
Owner: Segrey Tarasov
Revenues: $62.8 mln*
Segment: crop growing
Agrospetsservis specializes in the production of wheat and oilseeds and sugar beet. The group has a sugar plant, elevator and a private trading company. Agrospetsservis has got a compact land bank. Almost all 41,000 hectares are located in the Kirovograd region. Sergey Tarasov, the company owner, set up its business not typically for Ukrainian agrarians: he neither chased after land hectares nor took credits. “I just felt the situation and reduced the amount of borrowing,” explains Mr.Tarasov. He used borrowed funds for replenishment of the working capital. That is why his company did not grow as fast as other agricultural holdings. “Sergei was always thinking of who and how will operate it and how he will be able to control these people,” says Yakov Gribov, the owner of Nemiroff and a friend and partner of Mr.Tarasov. Of course, Agrospetsservis owner could not refuse from credits completely. Now the holding debts reach $ 6.6 million. Debt to EBITDA is 20 to 80. In 2015, due to the decline in profitability of sugar business, Mr.Tarasov was forced to cut planting of sugar beet, but he is not going to refuse completely from production of sugar.
№32 Pan Kurchak
Owner: Sergey Gorlach
Revenues: $59.7 mln*
Segment: poultry, pig breeding, meat processing
The company is a leader in the production of chicken meat in the Western Ukraine. Last year, due to the construction of a new poultry slaughter and processing department in Novovolynsk, it was able to increase its poultry production by 75%. Pan Kurchak exports its products, and in 2015 the holding exported four times more chicken than in 2014. With a new KatKut brand of halal products the company entered the Asian and Middle Eastern markets. The supplies to Moldova and Kyrgyzstan increased by one third, and by 25 times to Armenia. The group is also engaged in growing of pigs. The holding sells fresh meat and meat products under Pan Kurchak, Volyn Product, Volyn and Ukrainian Pork trademarks in Meat Point retail stores and Smarti supermarket in nine regions of Ukraine. The land dank of the company has over 16,000 hectares. It grows grains and oilseeds on its fields.
№33 Rostok - Holding
Owner: Victor Kupavtsev, Victor Kiyanovsky
Revenues: $52.2 mln
Segment: crop growing, livestock breeding, grain storage
Last year the gross harvest of grains and oilseeds of Rostok Holding Group reached 265,000 tons. The company grows corn and sunflowers. These crops are exported to the Middle East, South Africa, Asia, Europe and the CIS. In addition to 60,000 hectares of land, the Group also owns two dairy plants, eight cattle farms and three elevator complexes with storage capacity about 100,000 tons. Its cattle herd is 2,700 heads. In 2015, the investment in the group development amounted to $ 4 million. Most of the money was spent on the purchase of the agricultural machinery. The company also launched a new seed plant. Victor Kupavtsev, the owner, plans to increase its land bank to 100,000 hectares. “But we will stop at this point, otherwise the business efficiency will reduce”, says the agrarian. Rostok Holding will also continue promoting its trade and logistics. The holding is able to sell up to 1.5 million tons of grain to foreign markets.
№34 Vladimir-Volynskaya poultry
Owner: Аleksey Kovalenko and Aleksandra Rud
Revenues: $49.7 mln
Segment: poultry
Over the past two years the company increased its production by 40% and joined top three Ukrainian producers of poultry meat. Alexey Kovalenko, the owner of the factory, relies on eco-friendly technologies. Its enterprise grows poultry without antibiotics using natural plant food. Such meat costs 20-25% more than the meat from the other market leaders, Mironovsky Kheboproduct and Agromars Complex. In the near future, Vladimir Volynskaya poultry farm plans to increase its production capacity by 20-50%. This would be enough to take approximately 10-15% of the Ukrainian poultry market in terms of money and remain one of the top three producers. Now, most of the company’s products are sold under Chebaturochka Selyanska Kurochka brand name in the domestic market. In 2015, the company actively began to explore new markets, particularly in Africa and the Middle East. The company obtained the Halal Certificate to make deliveries to Muslim countries. Mr.Kovalenko also plans to increase the land bank to 50,000 hectares.
№35 Chistaya Kriniza
Owner: Yuriy Lebedin
Revenues: $47.6 mln*
Segment: crop growing
№36 Niva Pereyaslavschiny
Owner: Aleksander Mostipan
Revenues: $41.7mln
Segment: pig breeding, crop growing
Being one of the largest pork producers in Ukraine, Niva Pereyaslavschiny owns feed milling plant, slaughterhouse and meat processing plant, which produces products under Pyatachok brand name. The holding sheds are located 90 km from Kiev. Aleksander Mostipan, the holding owner, was one of the first in Ukraine who realized that the main thing in pig production is efficiency, rather than the size of livestock. His company is one of top five pork producers in Ukraine. Now, the production capacity of Niva Pereyaslavschiny is about 200,000 commercial pigs annually. The company is thoroughly structured: it has its own feed, its own grain for its production. Today the company’s land bank is about 23 hectares. In 2015, Mr. Mostipan invested about $ 11.2 million in the holding development. According to the businessman’s calculations, its own construction company allowed reduction of expenses on hog houses construction by 2.5 times. Each new object costs approximately $ 12 million to Mr.Mostipan.
№37 Danosha
Owner: AxzonA/S(Denmark)
Revenues: $40 mln*
Segment: pig breeding
№38 Trigon Agri
Owner: Joakim Helenius
Revenues: $38.6 mln
Segment: crop growing
Trigon Agri Group specializes in crop farming and is engaged in agribusiness in Ukraine, Russia and Estonia. In Ukraine, the company farms 46,000 hectares of land in Kharkiv, Kirovohrad, and Mykolaiv Regions. Apart from the traditional wheat, corn, sunflower and rapeseed, in 2016 the Group plans to grow peas and flax plant. Trigon Agri also has grain elevators with storage capacity of 322,000 tons and dairy farms. Because of the difficulties in the Russian market, the company plans to sell its assets in Rostov Region till August 2016. The holding expects to get approximately € 25 million from the transaction.
№39 HarvEast
Owner: Rinat Akhmetov, Vadim Novinskiy
Revenues: $37.6mln
Segment: crop growing, livestock breeding
№40 Grain Alliance (barishevskaya grain company)
Owner: BZK Grain Alliance AB (sweden)
Revenues: $36.7 mln
Segment: crop growing, livestock breeding
Grains and oilseeds are key business positions of Grain Alliance. The holding leases 50,000 hectares of land. In recent years Alex Oronovis, the company owner, interested in growing niche crops, in particular non-GMO soybeans and pumpkin. In 2015, soybean yield on the company’s fields reached 3 tons per hectare due the usage of advanced technologies. In 2016, Grain Alliance plans to grow another crop, beans. The businessman exports the niche products to Japan. In the near future, he expects to begin deliveries to Austria and France. The company also decided to learn the new area being production and calibration of soybean seeds. Grain Alliance will be growing soybean seeds together with two Canadian companies. Last year investments in Grain Alliance development amounted to over UAH 123 million. One third of these funds was spent on the purchase and renewal of equipment, and about 40% on expansion of the elevator capacity.
№41 Vinnitskaya Agroindustrial group
Owner: Vladimir Barzes
Revenues: $30.2 mln
Segment: crop growing, grain trading.
Vinnitskayaa Agroindustrial group is one of the most efficient agricultural holdings in Ukraine. It specializes in growing high-margin crops: sunflower, corn, soybean and barley, as well as in the storage of grain and wholesale trade. The company can impress with its compact land bank, almost all of its 50,000 hectares are located in Vinnitsa Region. In the near future, Vladimir Barzes, the company owner, is going to increase the sown area by 10,000 ha. The group has launched a satellite monitoring and established 24-hour dispatching service for effective development of its fields. No-till technology of minimum tillage without further cultivation helps the company to reduce its expenses. Moreover, it has its own biofermentation shop to produce organic fertilizer. In 2015, the company built a grain elevator with the capacity of 100,000 tons. The investments in the project amounted to Euros 20 million. The total capacity of four granaries of the holding is 250,000 tons of grain.
№42 Agroliga
Owner: Aleksandr Berdnik, Irina Poplavskaya
Revenues: $25 mln
Segment: grain and oilseed growing
№43 Zelenaya Dolina
Owner: Stanislav Voytovich
Revenues: $22.6 mln
Segment: crop growing, livestock breeding, sugarproduction
Zelenaya Dolina is one of six companies included in Terra Food Group by Stanislav Voytovich. Zelenaya Dolina farms 30,000 ha in Vinnitsa Region. The agro-complex also includes breeding factory, grain reception site and the grain elevator with the storage capacity of 32,000 tons. Zelenaya Dolina specializes in the cultivation and processing of sugar beet and sugar production. Its sugar factory can produce 360 tons of sugar per day. Zelenaya Dolina is also involved in animal breeding. Now the company’s farm has about 5,000 heads of cattle. Milk is delivered to the factories of Terra Food Group which covers up to 7% of its demand for raw materials. According to Voytovich, he is not going to expand Zelenaya Dolina. All resources are directed to the development of Terra Food which produces dairy products. Recently, he has invested in the construction of dairy plant in Turkey.
№44 Slobozhanskiy Agrocombinat
Owner: Aleksandr Gudzima, Aleksandr Aranchiy, Ruslan Sekareyv, Yuriy Strishniy
Revenues: $14.3 mln*
Segment: pig breeding
№45 KSG Agro
Owner: Sergey Kasyanov
Revenues: $13.8 mln*
Segment: crop growing, livestock breeding
KSG Agro holding is engaged in the restructuring of credit debt for the last two years. In 2015, the company managed to reduce its debts from $ 100 million to $ 42 million. In particular, KSG Agro gave its flour mills to Ukrsotsbank to repay the loan. Now, the holding leases them from the creditor on favorable conditions. Previously, the company worked mainly in the domestic market, now it is actively developing its export. Last year, KSG Agro started supplying flour in China. Sergey Kasyanov, its owner, plans to supply pork to foreign markets. That’s why he plans to build the second part of the pig farm. After the loss of 30,000 hectares in the Crimea, the land bank of the agricultural holding makes around 64,000 ha. The businessman is not going expand its business in the near future.