To tell the story about Ukrainian landmine issue, we've created a one-of-a-kind product, honey harvested from mined fields with the aid of technology and nature. This unique product was created for unique touchpoints. Limited-edition honey jars were introduced at international forums and conferences to raise awareness and funds for demining efforts. Also, jars with honey became a diplomatic tool for Ukraine’s diplomacy: it was distributed by Ukrainian diplomats among officials and politicians who can help us with humanitarian demining.

Prior to the war, the Ukrainian agriculture sector produced sufficient fruits, vegetables, crop and livestock products to feed around 400 million people globally. The invasion of Ukraine has had profound impacts on the farm and food sector (Grant, Arita, and Thompson, 2022). For one thing, it has limited Ukraine's exports of grain and vegetable oil, pushing up prices in global agricultural commodity markets (Smith, 2022; Glauber and Laborde, 2023). Kernel lost control of 15% of its farmland over russian invasion. Kernel estimates the drop in grains and oilseeds production in Ukraine at 35-40% as a result of russia's invasion of Ukraine (Forbes,2023).

Ukrainian government reports that approximately 174,000 km2 of country's territory may need demining. The World Bank estimates the total cost of Ukraine's demining efforts is about $38 billion. Given this challenge's scale, Kyiv cannot fund it independently and is therefore seeking help. It has intensified efforts to secure equipment, personnel, and financial support from international partners. No one can fully solve this issue alone, but we initiated the project to assist our state and agricultural sector in addressing it.

53% of Ukraine’s economy depends on food and agricultural exports. Today, landmines occupy 30% of our land, which is twice the size of Portugal. In early 2023, the World Food Programme estimated that around 11 million people in Ukraine were facing food insecurity. The conflict has had a devastating impact on food systems in Ukraine and created general insecurity around food production and distribution. Landmine issue causes fewer crops, less money, and not enough food. More specifically, most civilian landmine casualties in Ukraine have occurred during agricultural work such as farming or forestry. Without global assistance, it will take decades to make it safe. Countless agricultural fields remain dangerous. People can’t work there properly and safely.

Personnel limited edition jars with details about our issue became a diplomatic tool and were given directly to influential people. The honey harvested will serve as an invitation to a fundraising event for Ukraine's humanitarian demining, taking place in Geneva in October 2024.

The first 55 personnel jars were presented at special economical events such as World Economic Forum (Davos), USA-Ukraine Partnership Forum (Washington D.C.) and were given to influential people by Ukrainian diplomats. For now, the project has resulted into:

+ 175m of impressions worldwide

+ 517 of media headlines with free media budget

These are just the visible public outcomes, as much of the diplomatic work happens behind the scenes of events or one-on-one (thus, not all diplomatic work results can be quantified in numbers or published as photos). The Minefields Honey plays its role in diplomatic communication, serving as a tool of indirect cultural diplomacy.

Every little 280-gram jars of honey, which was never meant to exist, became an ambient media at events and forums to help Ukrainian diplomats discuss Ukraine's landmine issue. Every jar is a symbol of a problem, because it harvested by bees (not human) from real Ukrainian minefields. Every jar told the story of landmine crisis in Ukraine, via qr-code on itself. The harvested honey was served as a personnel invitation for fundraising events for Ukraine's demining efforts. It was also used as diplomatic gift in direct communication with influential people at the World Economic Forum and the USA-Ukraine Partnership Forum.