Getting kids to try organic milk in an age of advertising campaigns of fizzy alternatives requires a certain amount of cunning.
On a recent visit to an organic farm not far from Kyiv, one mother found a neat tactic. “Try it,” she told her youngster. “It’s like Coca-Cola but white and also tasty.”
The farm belongs to Yuriy Sergeyev, a small-scale pioneer of the organic industry in Ukraine, which is gaining popularity as parents look for healthier options for their children.
“It’s a big problem that people forgot the taste of natural food,” said Sergeyev.
It’s a big problem that people forgot the taste of natural food.”
– Yuriy Sergeyev, a small-scale pioneer of the organic industry in Ukraine.
A British-trained economist, Sergeyev moved to the village of Stovpiahy, some 85 kilometers from Kyiv, in 2009 to set up a small farm.
“When I started I had only two goats. Then one cow appeared. Then we needed a land to pasture the cow,” former Kyiv resident Sergeyev said, recalling his move to the countryside with a population of only 2,000.
Sergeyev used his family savings to buy vegetable gardens on the outskirts of the village and built his farm on one hectare of land. When the number of his cattle increased, he had to lease some land owned by villagers and the village council and hire workers.
“It was hard everywhere: from finding the people to gaining their credibility,” Sergeyev said, adding that it was very hard to hire good staff as villagers are not accustomed to working efficiently.
Organic food is produced without the use of chemical fertilizers, growth accelerators or antibiotics. Its proponents claim it is healthier and purer than other methods of farming. Among his many earth-friendly techniques, Sergeyev is especially proud of an earthworm Staratel, or a gold digger, which helps to convert animal manure into humus soil in two months instead of three to four years it would otherwise take for it to decompose on its own.
“Everything that we sell people, we also eat ourselves,” Viktor Velgan, the farm’s chief zoologist, said. He said he strictly controls sanitation and production quality as he shooed journalists out of the farm’s milk shop, concerned about keeping the room sterile.
Ukraine has no established standards for organic production. Sergeyev said he hadn’t applied for international certificates as he had no plans to export.
Customers at Sergeyev’s Kyiv shop seemed impressed with the quality of the produce.
“I have never seen milk of such high quality in our grocery shops. But my mom tells me that once in her youth there were products like this,” said Yevhenia Sydorenko, 36, who often visits to buy milk for her child.
I’m ready to pay more as it is the health of my child.”
– Yevhenia Sydorenko, customer.
The prices are certainly higher than in stores – Hr 25 for a liter of cow’s milk and Hr 100 per liter of goat’s milk. But Sergeyev said his sales are increasing every year.
“I’m ready to pay more as it is the health of my child,” said Sydorenko.
Products from the farm can be bought at www.milk-shop.com.ua or by visiting Sergeyev’s office in Kyiv.
People often come from Kyiv to Sergeyev’s farm aiming to forget the hustle and bustle of the big city and see well-groomed goats, sheep, calves, chickens and quails as well as vegetables and lots of flowers.
He said visitors often become his permanent clients. “Saturday and Sunday are the days when we have two-three or even five excursions,” said Sergeyev, who jokingly calls his farm a zoo.
Tymofiy Devko, the village mayor, is glad to have this farm in Stovpiahy as it brings money to the village budget.
“Now the farm has 10 workers with the average salary of Hr 1,500 per month. It gives taxes to the village budget of Hr 1,500-2,000 per month. We also lease the land for about Hr 5,000 per year,” Devko said.
Sergeyev has expansion plans. He wants to move most of his cattle into a new cowshed and extend the number of products by adding sausages.
Another aim of the farm is bee-farming and the cultivation of vegetables and flowers. “I brought lots of English roses,” the farmer said, pointing that it’s another passion of his that gave the name “Villa of Roses” to the branding of the farm’s products.
Now the farmer thinks he has enough knowledge and experience to write a thesis at Kyiv Agrarian University. But his main plans are still connected with land. “We came to this land with serious intentions and want to work here,” he said.
Kyiv Post staff writer Oksana Grytsenko can be reached at [email protected].
