For January–October 2026, Ukraine imported dairy products worth $319.9 million, while exports amounted to $287.3 million. As a result, the foreign trade balance of the sector became negative — the deficit reached $32.6 million. For comparison, over the same period last year, Ukraine had a surplus of $43.4 million. This is evidenced by data from the Union of Dairy Enterprises of Ukraine (SMDU), reports Ukrinform, writes agronews.ua.
Compared with the ten months of 2025, export revenue decreased by 10%, while the value of imports increased by 17%. Overall, the trade balance worsened by $76 million. Over the ten months, Ukraine exported 105.3 thousand tons of dairy products.
One of the factors in the deterioration of the competitiveness of Ukrainian dairy processing enterprises was the rise in the cost of raw materials. According to SMDU estimates, in August–October, purchase prices for raw milk rose by approximately 16%, while international prices for a number of dairy products remained stable or declined.
SMDU expects that in November the situation with foreign trade in dairy products may worsen due to price pressure and further growth in production costs. At the same time, record October shipments of cheeses indicate the potential of Ukrainian producers in the segment of products with higher added value.
It was announced how prices for grains and oilseeds changed