The European Commissioner for Agriculture has today (Wednesday, January 10) heard “strong concerns” from six leading agri-related EU associations about “unlimited imports from Ukraine”.
Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski confirmed that he had met with representatives from producers and manufacturers from the sugar, cereals, oilseeds, poultry meat and eggs sectors who told him that the European Commission needs to urgently find solutions to “manage” the flow of Ukrainian imports.
In a joint statement the Association of Poultry Processors and Poultry Trade (AVEC), the European Association of Sugar Manufacturers (CEFS), the European Confederation of Maize Production (CEPM), the International Confederation of European Beet Growers (CIBE), COPA-COGECA and the European Union of Wholesale with Eggs, Egg Products, Poultry and Game (EUWEP) warned that the agricultural sector “must not become a reason for wavering support to Ukraine”.
The associations said: “What is happening in Ukraine is intolerable and as the EU it is our duty and our interest to continue supporting them.
“We as producers, are ready to continue doing our part in the EU efforts to help Ukraine. Unfortunately, we believe that this effort is currently inequitably shared, with the agricultural sector bearing a disproportionate and unsustainable burden.”
Ukraine
They also warned that if the current Autonomous Trade Measures (ATMs) mechanism with Ukraine is maintained “with no adaptation” the survival of EU producers in general “will be at stake as will be the unwavering support to Ukraine”.
They added: “We do not want to be the reason of discord and the wavering of such support; hence, we aim at proposing and finding constructive solutions that can aid farmers on both sides and provide a working arrangement.
“We also believe that it is essential to propose an EU level solution to this issue to preserve EU unity and the integrity of the EU single market.”
The six associations put forward a number of measures, during their meeting with Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski, which they believe the European Commission, council and parliament should now consider when they discuss the renewal of the ATMs.
These include:
- Reinforced international efforts to facilitate the flow of goods from the Black Sea ports;
- Additional investments to improve logistics and infrastructure to enable the Solidarity Lanes to function properly and increase their number;
- Additional efforts to ensure that the products entering the internal market comply with the required phytosanitary standards, animal welfares standards and use of antimicrobials by reinforcing border controls;
- Creation of a system to make sure that the destination for all consignments of Ukrainian agricultural products is determined prior to entry into the EU;
- Introduction of a system to guarantee that the Ukrainian products reach this destination determined prior entry in the EU;
- Introduction of import thresholds for sensitive agricultural commodities covered by the six associations – subject to certain trade liberalisation terms.
The associations said that they believe these measures are a constructive way forward to maintain trade flows.
They also believe that they would “protect EU producers, help Ukrainian producers to diversify their exports, re-establish old trading routes and limit their dependency to the EU market”.