Svitlana Holyk, a researcher in Agricultural Wconomics at the University of Helsinki, got interested in pursuing her dream in academics at an early age. She completed her doctoral studies at the Institute of Agricultural Economics of NAASU at Ukraine and worked as an assistant of the chief economist and as researcher in the National Scientific Centre based in Kiev, Ukraine – before joining the University of Helsinki.
Agricultural Economics is a field of study which incorporates issues from food production and consumption, trade, agribusiness, policy all the way to environmental and resource issues. Svitlana’s interest in the field originates from her childhood when she was selling agricultural products in the local market. “It was good experience for me and later on I realized that I wanted to straighten my knowledge about agriculture markets and learn more about innovations in agricultural economic research,” she says.
“I am most keen in understanding the Pricing and Market Structure, which includes the efficiency and productivity problem faced by agricultural industries. I am now working on a project entitled ‘Measuring Efficiency, Productivity and Competitiveness in the Food Processor Industry of Finland’. In today’s world, there is still much to do in terms of how our food is produced in an efficient and environmentally sustainable manner. Together with the research community and industries we can not only increase the productivity level, but also improve the way we prosess and consume food, Svitlana elaborates.
In order to address the challenges caused by climate change, it is important to combine adaptation measures together with new ways to produce and consume food to allow better use of our scarce natural resources. Sustainability is achieved through adjusting farming systems and addressing socioeconomic factors to match the changing environment in the future.
“The University of Helsinki is doing cutting-edge research in environmental sciences. Its priorities, in addition to students and academia, is to explore new and innovative ways for better food cycle and consumption, supportive mechanisms for business activities and the sustainable use of natural resources and the environment. Finland also has the right environmental conditions for this type of research in terms of information and resources, which is also one if the advantages of working here,” she says.
According to FAO, 75% of globally produced food is generated from only 12 plants and five animal species. From this, 60% of all calories obtained from plants are dominated by 3 plants, rice, maize and wheat. There is a need for exploring a wider variety of food to consume in order to achieve food security now, and in the future.
When asked for solutions for improving food security Svitlana says that “the target in terms of better agricultural production is to understand opportunities and challenges of the future. For this, we need to acknowledge past experiences and understand the current situation, which will affect the condition for agriculture business. For example, it is well known that we are living in a knowledge-based economy which helps consumers to make wise choices and improves agribusiness performance, but we need to also explore the impact of internet in our production and consumption patterns. Today there are new opportunities for reducing food waste and increasing efficiency through e-commerce, such as innovative apps for buying leftover foods from local businesses or organic food from local farmers. It is my ambition to explore the challenges and opportunities for agriculture industry currently and in the future.”
Photo copyright of Svitlana Holyk