This land is meant for bread

Every business has a story. Starting and running a business is a unique journey in itself, offering a glimpse into the realities of its sector and the wider European financial ecosystem. Every story is different.

This is the story of resilience. Sacrifice. Hope. This is the story of Vladyslav and Viktoria Vovchenko from southern Ukraine.

Husband and wife Vladyslav and Viktoria live near the city of Kherson, in southern Ukraine. Once a bustling port city, Kherson now makes the news for the relentless attacks by Russian forces from across the Dnipro River. Today, the city is under Ukrainian control, though for the first months of the full-scale invasion in 2022, Kherson was occupied by Russian forces.  

About 65,000 people are still thought to remain in Kherson, a city that had roughly 300,000 residents before the war. Russian drones, often targeting ordinary people, are a constant threat.

“What helps us go on is our stubbornness,” begins Vladyslav – who only a few days before the interview had to deal with an FPV drone attack.

"With God’s grace, we know that perseverance will lead us to victory.” No other farmers in Europe face quite the same circumstances. Yet, at its core, this remains a family-owned business. Vladyslav’s grandfather started the business in 1994 and today Vladyslav runs it together with his father. “Before the invasion, we were in a strong financial position. We were growing steadily and replacing old machinery with newer equipment,” says Vladyslav.

Today, the reality is very different. After Ukrainian forces recaptured the city on 11 November 2022, Vladyslav and Viktoria returned to their farm to find their fields were mined with enemy shells. “I knew it would take years if we waited for the authorities to de-mine our fields,” Vladyslav explains. Vladyslav and his father decided to de-mine the fields themselves.

What has happened and continues to unfold is hard to imagine from a place of safety, as if it belongs to another reality: Vladyslav and his father decided to de-mine the fields themselves.

“As of now, we have de-mined 1600 hectares ourselves,” says Vladyslav.

They use a tracked tractor, designed to trigger mines in a controlled way beneath the soil. “There were so many anti-personnel mines in our fields, and we still have more than 100 hectares of land that remain contaminated.” He pauses, then adds: “It’s tough – you know you have to come back home to your family. For me, this land is meant for bread.”

Viktoria smiles and says this is “a very typical answer from a man.” She continues by saying “whenever Vladyslav goes out to the fields, I stay in the house. I often hear explosions – I see the ground covered in earth and dust, everything flying in all directions.”

Viktoria organises their financial meetings and documents their situation, trying to show the outside world what is happening in Kherson. “We realised we needed financial support, and after countless searches and rejections, we finally found our lifeboat,” she says.

In 2025, the EU announced a new funding package for Ukraine, with nearly €600 million in financing for a range of businesses across the country. Much of this support takes the form of loans, backed by EU guarantees and channelled through Ukrainian banks, including Ukrgasbank, with the aim of unlocking financing for smaller businesses such as the farm near Kherson.

“It allowed us to survive. It allowed us to keep working and maintain some sense of stability and support,” says Viktoria. “Most importantly, it allowed us to support our village.”

It is telling that when Vladyslav is asked about the future, he does not turn inward to his own farm, but outward to a region still under immense strain: “My dream is to build an agricultural processing plant in our region – to scale up, develop and create jobs for Ukrainians who will return after peace comes.”