Ukrainian Chef to Offer Borscht Made with Vegetables from Former Minefield; Hopes to Expand Awareness of Mine Victims, Recovery Efforts

By Kazuhiko Makita / Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent

14:46 JST, October 20, 2025

LONDON — A famous Ukrainian chef is visiting Japan in conjunction with the Ukraine Mine Action Conference, which starts in Tokyo on Wednesday, in hopes of using Ukrainian cuisine to increase awareness of landmine victims and recovery efforts in his country.

While the conference is ongoing, Yevhen Klopotenko, 38, will operate a food truck in Tokyo from which he will serve borscht, a traditional Ukrainian dish, made with ingredients including vegetables grown on land which has been cleared of landmines.

His visit to Japan was organized by the United Nations Development Program, which supports landmine clearance activities in Ukraine. Klopotenko has a restaurant in Kyiv and is well known in Ukraine for his appearances on TV shows and for his recipe books, among other activities. Since Russia’s aggression in Ukraine began in February 2022, he has provided food to people fleeing the war, including opening a restaurant in Lviv, western Ukraine, where evacuees eat for free.

Klopotenko said that the war had changed everything. Before it began, his dream had been to make his restaurant famous around the world, but the invasion caused him to realize that food can save lives.

In areas of Ukraine from which Russian troops have withdrawn, mine clearance activities are in full swing, with the support of the international community. Beets, cabbage, onions and other ingredients used in the borscht to be served at this event were grown on farmland that became usable after it had been cleared of landmines. Klopotenko says that the fact that it has become possible to grow crops again in places that were once occupied by Russian forces and turned into minefields may be a small thing, but for Ukrainian people, it means victory. He hopes to show his appreciation to the Japanese people for their support by having them taste his borscht.

The food truck will be set up at the Tokyo International Forum in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, from noon to 2 p.m. Wednesday and at the Shibuya Cultural Center Owada in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Thursday and at the United Nations University in the same ward from 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday. Borscht will be provided free of charge, but the service will be closed once a certain amount has been given out.

Courtesy of Yevhen Klopotenko

Yevhen Klopotenko provides borscht at an event held to support evacuees from the war in Lviv, western Ukraine, in May 2022.