Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine Vitalii Koval opened the UNIDO Vienna Food Safety Forum 2025 in Austria. UNIDO is the United Nations organisation focused on industrial development.
Deputy Minister Oksana Osmachko also participated in the event.
Vitalii Koval expressed gratitude to all those supporting Ukraine in these challenging times, aiding its resilience and development. He highlighted that Ukrainians understood food safety like few others, having endured famine and currently facing war. Despite these challenges, Ukrainian farmers remain steadfast, continuing to sow and harvest, recognising their role in ensuring not only domestic but also global food security by supplying food to 400 million people worldwide.
“The Vienna Food Safety Forum also addresses the potential of digitalisation. No matter how secure your country’s situation may seem, always plan for the future. Create conditions to ensure food security is predictable and supported by alternative pathways. Managing balances, maintaining product reserves and ensuring storage and export routes, alongside analysing large datasets, all help manage food security in critical situations,” Vitalii Koval emphasised.
He noted that digitalisation fostered trust within a country. Automated processes make it easier to provide aid to those in need. The Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food has such experience with the State Agrarian Register, where 218,000 farmers are registered, receiving state and international support through the Register’s portal.
“The Vienna Food Safety Forum is not just a forum – it’s a call to action. Only by uniting to address emerging challenges can we ensure food stability. Today, this is not just an issue for one country but for the global community,” the minister underscored. (Government portal)