Blue, black wheat to be grown in Ukraine

Ukrainian agrarians are set for the first time to harvest black- and blue-colored winter wheat.

A farm located in Khmelnytsky region's Krasyliv district will be engaged in the project, AgroPortal wrote on December 19.

This decision was prompted by the agrarians' desire to keep up with current trends in agriculture and food production. They also seek to be competitive in bakery markets.

"Not only do we plan to sell the obtained grain and flour, we also seek to use it in our own bakeries for special types of bread. In terms of specifications, the new wheat is not inferior to its traditional varieties," the report said.

"Regarding harvest, certain issues are likely to arise. After all, we traditionally sow high-yielding varieties of red wheat, which yields, as a rule, at least 8 tonnes per hectare (t/ha), whereas black grain wheat – a mere 5-6 (t/ha)," the publication said.

Read alsoUkraine exports almost 23 mln tonnes of grain since JulySeeds of foreign varieties of colored grains were adapting to cultivation in Ukraine at Odesa-based Breeding and Genetic Institute during the last decade.

Prices of such original wheat are expected to be high since experimental production is expensive. Moreover, the farm in Krasyliv district is involved in organic farming.