Romania approves terms for import of Ukrainian agricultural products
MOSCOW. Oct 13 (Interfax) - The Romanian government has approved a decree regulating the import of four agricultural crops from Ukraine, Ukrainian media reported citing Romanian Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Florin Barbu.
"Today the government has adopted an emergency decree that protects Romanian farmers from grain imports from Ukraine. Based on a mechanism agreed with Ukraine, we are establishing a procedure according to which we will only allow the import of wheat, corn, sunflower and soybeans on the basis of a marketing agreement issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development," he said in a message on the Romanian government website.
The minister explained that the import of Ukrainian grain would be possible only for Romanian farmers and processors who document that it is necessary to replenish their stocks. In addition, only grains that meet the quality standards confirmed by ANSVSA certificates based on samples received and analyzed can be processed or used as feed.
"I cannot allow products that are affected by diseases and pests, or that are not 100% safe for our consumption, to enter the Romanian market. The mechanism has been agreed both with our farmers and with the Ukrainian authorities," Barbu said.
He also said that next week he will meet with the Minister of Agriculture of Moldova to analyze reserve stocks and the amount of grain that Moldovan farmers have at their disposal. The agricultural ministers of the two countries intend to agree on "a new practical licensing mechanism and on grains that should come from Moldova."
Answering a question about a possible expansion of the list of agricultural products that will be subject to licensing, Barbu said that there is no decision yet, but negotiations with Romanian processors and retailers will take place next week. The feasibility of any changes will be discussed with them.
As previously reported, the agricultural sectors in Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria were under attack due to duty-free supplies of cheap food to the EU from Ukraine, which settled on the markets of these countries and brought down prices for local products. Under pressure from these five states, the European Commission in May introduced a ban on the import of a number of Ukrainian agricultural crops (wheat, corn, rapeseed and sunflower), which was in effect through September 15.
After the restrictions were lifted, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia introduced unilateral bans, and Bulgaria thought about placing quotas on the import of Ukrainian sunflower. Poland has expanded the list of Ukrainian products prohibited for import to include rapeseed cake and meal, as well as corn bran, wheat flour and derivative products. Hungary has its own list of 24 product items.
Ukraine filed a claim with the WTO, accusing Poland, Hungary and Slovakia of discriminatory treatment of its agricultural products.
Ukraine is currently negotiating the introduction of a mechanism for licensing the export of Ukrainian agricultural products with mandatory verification in each of the five countries.