The problem of the world's access to grain has received widespread attention since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine.
Both Ukraine and Russia are large net exporters of wheat, maize and sunflower oil - raw materials that are now not coming out of the countries due to the war and sanctions.
The lack of grain risks causing mass starvation in already vulnerable countries.
- More and more poor people around the world are starving to death, said the head of the UN food program David Beasley in June this year.
"Never been so close"
To reduce the risk of starvation, the UN, with the help of Turkey, is trying to reach an agreement between Russia and Ukraine that will ensure the export of grain across the Black Sea.
An agreement is imminent, according to Tamer Umdu, who is in contact with representatives of Ukrainian farmers' associations.
- They have never been so close to signing an agreement as now, he says.
He warns that Ukrainian agriculture risks falling far behind if exports do not start soon and harvests can be harvested much as planned now.
- If exports are not opened up, all incentives to grow grain in Ukraine risk disappearing.
Then we can talk about a decline 30 years in time, says Tamer Umdu.