The protests of European farmers are political and the supply of Ukrainian grain does not reduce the profitability of their business, the Union of Ukrainian Food Producers (UAS) said on Wednesday, as quoted by Reuters.
Logistical difficulties have kept large quantities of Ukrainian grain, which is cheaper than that produced in the European Union, in central European countries, reducing prices and sales for farmers there, who have staged protests.
Last week, Poland said it would temporarily halt imports of Ukrainian grain after farmers’ protests prompted the resignation of Poland’s agriculture minister, but transit would be allowed.
“The political nature of European farmers’ protests is obvious. Ukraine sells some grain to Poland and it is not a huge amount,” Denis Marchuk, deputy chairman of the Ukrainian Agrarian Council (UAC), said in a statement.
“However, certain forces are seeking to prove that this is due to the oversupply of Ukrainian grain,” he said, noting that the country faces elections later this year.
He added that the decline in global grain and oilseed prices was a trend and that Ukraine was using Poland and Romania as transit routes instead of exporting directly to them.
Marchuk said the ban on imports to Poland could affect Ukrainian farmers in the western regions, as they traditionally sell to consumers in Poland and farms still have up to 40% of last year’s crop they plan to sell and use for sowing.
A major producer and exporter of grain, Ukraine’s grain output is likely to fall to around 53 million tonnes in calendar year 2022 from a record 86 million tonnes in 2021, with officials blaming hostilities in the country’s eastern, northern and southern regions .
However, Ukrainian officials this month said the country could export another 15.6 million tonnes of grain in the April-June quarter, bringing exports this season to nearly 53 million tonnes.
Millions of tonnes of grain from the 2021 crop remained in Ukraine’s silos after its Black Sea ports were closed for the second half of the 2021/22 season.
The ports were unblocked at the end of July 2022 after the UN and Turkey brokered the so-called “grain deal”.
Efforts to extend the deal beyond next month continue, with Russia pushing for the removal of barriers to exports of its agricultural products and fertilizers.
