Ukrainian farmers wear bulletproof vests to sow spring crops
© Dmytro Smoliyenko/Ukrinform/Future Publishing/Getty Images Ukrainian farmers are wearing helmets and bulletproof vests to sow spring crops as their country’s war with Russia rages nearby.
Farmers in the Zaporozhye region of south-eastern Ukraine are risking their lives to carry out spring sowing less than 20 miles away from active combat zones.
The fields have to be checked for Russian mines and other explosives prior to drilling. During spring planting operations, safety is paramount, the farmers say, which is why they have started wearing body armour.
© Dmytro Smoliyenko/Ukrinform/Future Publishing/Getty Images
See also: Ukraine’s cropping prospects improve after Russian retreat
On 8 April, an unnamed farmer was photographed scouring land on foot in the Zaporozhye region and checking for any dangerous objects before the tractor driver could be given the all-clear to drill sunflowers.
© Dmytro Smoliyenko/Ukrinform/Future Publishing/Getty Images
The spring sowing campaign is under way in 22 of 24 regions of Ukraine, according to the country’s agriculture ministry. Despite the hostilities, the government hopes farmers will plant six million hectares of crops this year, which is equivalent to 80% of the area farmed last year.
In some regions, such as the Dnipropetrovsk oblast in south-eastern Ukraine, farmers are working around the clock to complete the spring sowing campaign.
De-mining operations
About half of Ukraine’s land area – up to 116,000sq miles – needs to be checked and possibly de-mined, according to Oleh Bondar, a spokesperson for the country’s state emergency service.
The main de-mining operations are taking place to the west and east of the country’s capital, Kyiv, but also in the major cereal-growing regions of Kharkiv, Chernihiv and Sumy.
The authorities are clearing between 2,000 and 6,000 explosive objects each day, said Mr Bondar. “But we will do our best to make it possible for our farmers to do planting this year,” he added.