The imbalance caused by the Ukrainian supply on European markets is fueling tensions between local farmers and Brussels.
With our correspondent in Brussels, Jean-Jacques Hery
Contrary to what was foreseen in the texts adopted after the outbreak of the war in Ukrainepart of Ukrainian agricultural products does not transit to European ports but remains in fact on the local markets of neighboring countries. And that’s where the whole problem lies. Less expensive than wheat or corn produced in Poland, Bulgaria or Romania, these products partly replace them.
As a result of this overabundance, supply explodes on a limited market and, as a consequence, prices fall. It is therefore necessary to store the crops in silos longer. Brief, ” our whole agricultural system is under pressure and our incomes are decreasing complain local farmers.
The European Commission is well aware of this. According to a spokesperson, the situation brings “ excess supply, shrinking demand, rising storage costs and falling local prices “.
► To read also: One year after the Russian invasion in Ukraine: what results for cereals?
Help plan
Brussels has therefore proposed a first aid plan of 56 million euros, voted a little over a week ago by the Member States. A plan intended for Poland, Romania and Bulgaria and financed by the CAP reserve.
But for the countries on the front line, this is not enough. A second complementary plan is in preparation and its amount should be slightly higher. One thing is certain, the expectation will be the strongest for Romania and Bulgaria because Warsaw has just signed a bilateral agreement with Ukraine which suspends its exports of certain cereals to Poland.
Last Friday, Romanian and Bulgarian farmers also demonstrated to complain about the competition they consider unfair.