Overview of the second industry mission to Spain, which took place in September 2025

At the end of September, the industry business mission to Spain “Agro-Innovation Exchange: Spain – Ukraine” took place, organized by Economy of Trust Ukraine in cooperation with the Club of Mayors of Ukraine, ALLE FOOD UA, the development agency UMEDA, and other strategic partners.

The business trip of representatives of the agricultural sector and mayors of agrarian-oriented communities to Madrid, as well as to the world-famous Spanish regions of Huelva (berry cultivation) and Murcia (greenhouses, vegetables, salad crops, stone fruits), was a strategic opportunity for Ukrainian agricultural enterprises and municipalities to establish direct connections with European innovation centers in horticulture. This professional exchange focused on advanced technologies in berry and vegetable growing, irrigation systems, and export logistics that can be implemented in Ukraine’s developing agricultural sector.
This comprehensive seven-day program provided participants with exclusive access to leading Spanish agricultural enterprises, technical expertise, and opportunities for business networking with potential technology and seedling suppliers.
For our members and community leaders, the mission also offered a chance to meet Spanish colleagues, establish partnerships, and receive practical guidance on developing new important infrastructure projects for their communities using Spanish financing models.

The first day of the mission began in Madrid with a visit to the main annual event for the European fruit, berry, and vegetable sector – Fruit Attraction 2025.
Among the twelve pavilions, we chose to start with the Innovation Hub – a space presenting the latest technologies in agricultural innovation. Here, participants were able to familiarize themselves with the main trends shaping the future of global agribusiness.

The days at Fruit Attraction 2025 were also rich in B2B meetings for members of the Ukrainian delegation with various technology companies at the stand of our Spanish partner Agritech Murcia and with commercial organizations such as ProExport to discuss the export of Ukrainian products. During these meetings, members of the delegation managed to negotiate the export of the first batches of fruit grown in Ukraine.

After practical interactions with other exhibition participants, the delegation visited the Ukrainian collective berry stand to support their compatriots and share their first impressions and insights from participating in Fruit Attraction 2025.

All our missions are always accompanied by meetings between the Ukrainian delegation and representatives of the Embassy of Ukraine in Spain on economic issues. During the open dialogue, current challenges for the Ukrainian agricultural sector and ways to strengthen partnerships between Ukraine and Spain were discussed, including cooperation between Ukrainian and Spanish cities.

At the beginning of the second day of the business mission to Spain, the Ukrainian delegation split into two groups. Business representatives, together with Olena Kaizhen, Director of ALLE FOOD UA, visited Mercamadrid, the largest wholesale food market in Spain, often called “a city within a city” because it covers about 60,000 square meters. The market’s director personally guided the visit, showing the delegation large fish, meat, and vegetable sections where auctions and wholesale trading take place daily. This helped the business representatives deepen their understanding of the Spanish food market’s operations.

At the same time, Vitalii Biruk, Mayor of Ratne, Andrii Simonov, Mayor of Pyriatyn, and Yuliia Chufistova, member of the presidium of the Club of Mayors of Ukraine and Director of UMEDA, attended a meeting with Luis Martínez-Sicluna, Secretary of the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (Federación Española de Municipios y Provincias, FEMP), and representatives of the Department of International Relations. The meeting focused on signing a Memorandum of Partnership to promote more productive cooperation between Spanish and Ukrainian municipalities in various fields. Representatives of the public organization “Help Ukraine,” which actively works on establishing sister-city partnerships between Ukrainian and Spanish cities, also participated in this dialogue.

The Ukrainian delegation also had the opportunity to learn more about the latest Spanish agricultural technologies and current trends in organic production, processing, and distribution of fruits and vegetables during the key international exhibition event – the Bio Fruit Congress, held within Fruit Attraction. After the congress, participants were invited to visit the stands of various technology companies. For example, the delegation examined the products of the Turkish company GENER, which specializes in agricultural wind machines that help protect crops from frost and other adverse weather conditions.

At the end of this busy day, the group of berry producers traveled to the Huelva region to learn more about leading Spanish berry growers and their production.

The Huelva region is a recognized European leader in berry production and has developed complex systems for growing strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries. Their production models generate premium exports during periods when most European producers are not operating. In this region, we had the great opportunity to meet with the mayors of two Spanish towns – Bonares and San Juan del Puerto.

These meetings were not only politically significant but also included interesting discussions about cooperative models for implementing projects in Spanish communities, both agricultural and energy-related. After the discussions, we visited two such projects: one focused on agrivoltaics and another on a berry cooperative. Such experiences should be implemented in Ukrainian communities to strengthen economic development and adopt the best global practices.

After Huelva, this group joined the others in Murcia. The Murcia region is known for its advanced vegetable cultivation and water conservation technologies. Murcia has turned agricultural challenges into competitive advantages. Its greenhouses and water management systems are global benchmarks for resource efficiency. We spent the entire day visiting the region’s technology companies and discussing project financing models for Ukraine.

Concluding the trip on Saturday, our group visited new greenhouses under construction by the company J.Huete, where participants were able to see the creation of a new project firsthand and ask practical questions.