Russia controls more than 20% of Ukraine's arable land

A map released on July 7 by NASA Harvest, the US space agency's agriculture and food security program, shows Ukraine's crop distribution through mid-June, as well as agricultural areas controlled by Russia and separatists.

Russian forces and separatists reportedly control 22 percent of Ukraine's arable land, including fields that grow 28 percent of Ukraine's winter crops and 18 percent of its spring crops.

The report is based on analysis of satellite data from Planet Labs and the European Space Agency, as well as the Institute for the Study of War and the American Enterprise Institute's Critical Threats Project.

The US Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service estimates that before the outbreak of hostilities, Ukraine supplied 46% of the world's sunflower oil exports, as well as 9% of wheat, 17% of barley and 12% of corn.

Agricultural areas in Ukraine. Graphics:NASA.

Agricultural exports, including grain, have been suspended in Ukraine after Russia launched a special military operation to “demilitarize and defascize” its neighbor. Ukraine accused the Russian navy of blocking ports in the Black Sea. Russia, meanwhile, said Ukraine had laid many mines in the area, preventing cargo ships from entering and leaving.

The United Nations has warned that if this grain is not released, the world risks facing a food crisis. "We are in the early stages of a food crisis that has the potential to affect every country," said Inbal Becker-Reshef, director of NASA Harvest.

Despite the fighting, Ukraine is on track to achieve a winter crop yield of around 4.1 tonnes per hectare, Becker-Reshef said. However, it is unclear how Ukraine will export this grain.

A tractor spreads fertilizer on a field on the outskirts of Kharkov, Ukraine on April 5. Photo:Reuters.