Profitable farming - investing into UA
Date: 12-04-2011
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Lviv Oblast, Ukraine –Ole Jorgensen’s pig farm have been established in Ukraine in 2006 when he was asked first to consult and then to head the Halychyna-Zahid farm, situated near Kavsko village in Lviv Oblast. The company belongs largely to Danish owners who have invested 30 million euros. The project is supported by a fund established by the Danish government to support businesses in Central and Eastern Europe, which owns 11 percent of the company. Another 6 percent belongs to the Nordic Environmental Finance Corporation, which helped modernize and reconstruct the farm.

He and his deputies are not the only Danish farmers in the area. There are dozens who came here in the 1990s. Some first setup textile shops. Others tried wood shops. Some tried both, as well as other ventures. Their success varied. But those who are left meet every Friday in a bar in Lviv and complain about over-regulation, lack of rule of law, difficulties to get work permits and other typical problems experienced by investors in Ukraine. Over the years, it has become harder for Jorgensen to listen to complaints. “It makes no sense to complain. Follow the rules or go home,” he said. “If you want to stay here, you have to be able to adapt. If not, you shouldn’t have come.”

The Danish general manager insists that he is happy with the government and even enjoys some support. There is a fixed agrarian tax, he can get value-added tax refunded as a tax credit and there is also another state program now motivating the farmers, reimbursing Hr 1 for each kilogram sold.

“Danish people do not have the imagination to predict everything that can happen here,” he said. “You just have to find a way to control it,” he added.

Source: www.kyivpost.com
 

Last changed: 26-04-2011 at 15:24