In Ukraine, there were some 40,000ha of vineyards before Russia's full-scale invasion launched in February 2022. Photo: AFP
Transform land scarred by the ravages of war into a source of one of life's simple pleasures, such as a glass of wine?
This is, in essence, the project of the non-profit Roots of Peace, a California-based organisation that works to eradicate remnants of landmines from an area and turn it into agricultural land that can be used to grow fruit, vegetables and even grapes.
For the past 25 years, the organisation has worked in Afghanistan, Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina to transform minefields into resources for people wounded by armed conflict and to provide them with new sources of income.
Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion on Feb 24, approximately 30% of Ukraine's agricultural lands have been mined. Once the breadbasket of Europe, the country led by Volodymyr Zelensky faces long-term challenges with an estimated millions of buried mines in its territory.
British charity Halo Trust has already been carrying out demining work on the ground in Ukraine and is working on extending its operations to the Kherson region since the departure of Russian troops in November alongside Ukrainians trained in the matter.
Not far away, in the Mykolaiv Oblast, the task will be just as delicate, but the region with a port on the Black Sea, located east of the famous port of Odesa, already has a project for the future.
A programme called "Mines to Vines" intends to replant vines so that the wine-growing families who previously made their living with the agricultural resources of this land, which is suitable for the production of red wines, can return to their pre-war professional activity.
According to the association Roots of Peace, which launched the initiative and which spoke with the American publication Food and Wine, the project will be carried out in several phases, starting with a fundraising campaign before launching the mine clearance process. The replanting of crops is expected to start next spring.
This restoration initiative is particularly suited to the area: Mykolaiv is a major wine-growing region of Ukraine, with inter-professional association Wines of Ukraine claiming that it is home to 15,000ha of vineyards, a little less than the Kherson region and its 20,000ha (while the biggest viticultural area is Odesa with 52,000ha). Ukraine's wine culture has a long history behind it, with the cultivation of grapes in the area dating back to the 4th century BC in the area of Crimea.
The territory annexed by the Russians in 2014, is known for mellow and sweet wines and pre-2014 accounted for half of Ukraine's wine production.
However, other Ukrainian wines have a drier profile, such as the whites from the Transcarpathian region or Zakarpattia, which counts 8,000ha of vineyards in the far west of Ukraine.
Since 2015, the production of dry white wines has increased by 7-9% each year.While world-famous grape varieties such as merlot, chardonnay or riesling are grown in Ukraine, indigenous grape varieties also exist, such as telti-kuruk, a white grape variety grown in the Odesa area and characterised by a fresh, floral quality.
Before Russia's full-scale invasion this year, Ukraine was home to, in total, 40,000ha of vineyards and a hundred wineries producing 66 million litres of wine annually (2021 figures), according to the OIV, the International Organization of Vine and Wine. – AFP Relaxnews
