Ukraine’s new way to get its grain to the world despite Russia’s threat in the Black Sea

By Hanna Arhirova, Anton Shtuka, Alex Babenko and Courtney Bonnell

Rare reporting and visuals illustrated a fledgling shipping corridor launched after Russia pulled out of a UN-brokered agreement that allowed food to flow safely from Ukraine during the war.

After learning about Ukraine’s new grain-shipping corridor, Arhirova and the team in Ukraine started pursuing ways of getting visuals of the operations in the Black Sea. Previous attempts to access any grain storage facilities had failed. AP producer Volodymyr Yurchuk had established a relationship with Agroprosperis Group, one of Ukraine’s biggest agricultural producers and exporters and introduced them to the team. Eventually, they agreed to grant AP journalists access to one of the storage facilities.

EMEA business editor Courtney Bonnell in London worked with Arhirova to add crucial context, speaking with shipping officials and shipping analysts and insurers who explained the risks and benefits involved. Arhirova also had the photos, showing views of the silos and grain handling and storage facilities in central Ukraine. The result was rare, strong footage that showed trucks and trains in central Ukraine being loaded up with grain from silos, bound for the country’s southern Black Sea ports. The story added to the world’s understanding of how a growing number of ships are using the new corridor, protected by the military, to get Ukraine’s grain to the world. The story had high customer usage and engagement.