INVESTMENT ACTIVITY AS A FACTOR IN ENSURING UKRAINE’S FOOD SECURITY: CHALLENGES, STRATEGIC PRIORITIES, AND EUROPEAN EXPERIENCE

Abstract

The article presents a comprehensive theoretical-methodological and applied analysis of investment activity as a fundamental endogenous factor in ensuring Ukraine's food security amidst global turbulence and macroeconomic destabilization risks. It examines the relationship between capital investment dynamics and the structural resilience of agri-food systems through the lens of the four key FAO determinants. The relevance of this topic stems from the fact that investment activity in the agricultural sector is the main driver of transformation and a key determinant of food security at this stage. The purpose of this article is to justify the strategic role of investment processes in ensuring Ukraine’s food security in the context of current global and domestic challenges. The subject of this study is the economic relationships surrounding investment activities as a factor in ensuring food security. The theoretical foundation of this article is the scientific and methodological framework for analyzing food security, which traditionally incorporates the FAO’s unified conceptual model. The methods used include analysis and synthesis, abstraction and generalization, as well as methods for ensuring academic integrity. Investment activity in the agricultural sector is identified as the cornerstone for modernizing production infrastructure, introducing innovative agricultural technologies, minimizing logistical losses, and enhancing the resilience of food supply chains to global and local challenges. The scientific novelty of the findings lies in the substantiation of the essence of food security as a dynamic socioeconomic system that goes beyond the mere quantitative saturation of the market with food products and guarantees continuous physical, social, and economic access for all segments of the population to safe and nutritious food necessary for maintaining an active and healthy life. It has been demonstrated that targeted funding and incentives for capital investment in the agro-industrial complex directly determine the market supply of food products, the level of effective demand through job creation, the quality of nutrition, and the country’s overall macroeconomic stability. The practical significance lies in the possibility of using the results of a comparative analysis of the experiences of France and Poland in the areas of government regulation, institutional support, and the promotion of investment processes in Ukraine’s agricultural sector. The conclusions of this article may be useful for justifying strategic directions for the diversification of capital flows in Ukraine, aimed at transitioning from an export-raw materials paradigm to a model of deep vertical integration, technological modernization, and energy self-sufficiency for agribusiness entities.