The State Savings Bank of Ukraine has entered into an agreement with the agro-industrial holding Astarta, aimed at financing an investment project for the construction of an advanced soybean processing plant. It is assumed that the loan will have a duration of 7 years for an amount of 60 million dollars. This was announced by the Ukrainian Ministry of Economy. "Today, as import-export routes remain limited due to war, increasing processing and processing is one of the government's key priorities, as increased production of value-added products contributes to growing manufacturing opportunities. export, tax revenue, budget, and the creation of new jobs in Ukraine," the note reads.

In 2021 the share of the processing industry was 10%, which fell to 8% of GDP in 2022. Compared to 20% in developed countries, according to OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) standards. "For us, the low level of this indicator means fewer raw materials, technological backwardness and the economy's dependence on imports. Our goal is to increase the share of the processing industry to 20%", underlined the first vice-prime minister , and Minister of Economy, Yulia Svyridenko .

Astarta is an agroindustrial company operating in eight regions of Ukraine. The company is the No. 1 sugar producer in the country. Its main activities are cultivation, sugar production, animal husbandry, soybean processing and bioenergy. Today its annual soybean processing capacity is 230,000 tons per year.