Ukraine placed in 52nd out of 109 countries according to a Global Food Security Index ranking, the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC) announced Tuesday.

The Global Food Security Index was developed by the Economist Intelligence Unit, DuPont and many international experts. The index studies aspects of food in countries, dealing with how affordable it is, its availability and the levels of quality and safety in the food supply.

Ukraine was rated in 52nd with 56.4 points overall. Russia and Belarus bested Ukraine in this regard by placing 40th and 47th, respectively. The U.S. was ranked at number one with 89.3 points.

Ukraine showed strongly in the availability, safety and quality categories. According to the index the government enables an environment where safe food production is facilitated. With availability the country halved the global average of food waste versus total supply. There, the country showed 2.4 tons compared to the global average of 4.8 tons.

Limited farmer financing lead to a lower than average showing in the affordability of food. The country has improved in this area with leniency on import taxes making food more affordable. The average household in Ukraine will spend 38.9 percent of its household income on food; the global average is 34.5 percent.