Ukrsadprom insists on recognizing apples as perishable products, normalizing export procedure with EU

MOSCOW. Oct 27 (Interfax) - The Ukrsadprom association has asked Ukraine's Agrarian Policy and Food Ministry to update the procedure for Ukrainian fruit export via checkpoints on the border with the European Union and to add fruits to the list of perishable agricultural products, Ukrainian media said, citing the association's press service.

"This difficult year, Ukrainian horticultural enterprises have grown and gathered a good harvest. In particular, we are speaking about apples, which make up a considerable portion of Ukrainian horticultural exports. But, unfortunately, on their way to foreign consumers Ukrainian apples have encountered the same problems for years. These are, first and foremost, delays on the Ukrainian border," Ukrsadprom said.

Trucks transporting apples have to wait in the same line on the border, sometimes even for several weeks, and apples get spoiled because of adverse conditions and long waiting times.

Ukrsadprom said that it has repeatedly asked the Agrarian Policy and Food Ministry to add apples to the list of perishable agricultural products and to assign a certain UKT FEA code to them.

This problem should be tackled in a comprehensive manner, Ukrsadprom said. Alongside adding horticultural products to the list of perishable goods, it is necessary to amend the fruit clearance procedure on the border with the EU.

"It is necessary to equip new border crossings to enable the transportation of farmers' produce through them. Besides, it is necessary to adjust existing border crossing to enable the transportation of perishable goods through them," the association said.

Ukrsadprom also published a number of proposals for updating the export procedure submitted by fruit producers and exporters, including Gadz Farm, Dary Beregovshchiny and Youth Agrarian Union LLC.