Romanian farmers are threatening to launch a large-scale nationwide nationwide protest on June 7 if authorities do not ban the transit and import of grain from Ukraine from June 15, 2023, to March 15, 2024, the Alliance for Agriculture and Cooperation (AAC) reported.
“As a measure to protect the activities of farmers and the agri-food sector, we ask President Klaus Johannis, the prime minister, the heads (of the local parties PNL and PSD – IF) Nicolae Ciucă and Marcel Ciolacu, (Minister of Agriculture) Petra Daea to represent Romanian interests more firmly and to take all legal steps and diplomatic measures that are imposed to prohibit the transit and import of agricultural products from Ukraine in the period from June 15, 2023 to March 15, 2024,” AAS adevarul. ro.
The Alliance notes that the agricultural market is “severely distorted to the detriment of Romanian farmers.” It argues that in 2023, most farmers will be forced to close their farms because of the high costs of growing crops, and the prospect of selling products at prices below cost “even under good production conditions will not save them.
The ACC appeal stresses that the EUR10 million allocated by the European Commission to Romania to mitigate losses is insignificant. “These funds can at most be redirected to restore, at least partially, the road infrastructure damaged by the intensive transit of Ukrainian goods,” the ACC believes.
The member organizations of the Alliance for Agriculture and Cooperation – AAC, National Federation PROAGRO, League of Agricultural Producers’ Associations from Romania – LAPAR, Union of the National Chapter of Vegetable Sector Cooperatives – UNCSV and Forum of Professional Farmers and Processors from Romania – FAPPR, together grow crops and raise livestock on more than 4.7 million ha. In its ranks are more than 56.5% of those employed in the agricultural sector and 20% of the food industry in Romania.
In Poland, as well as in Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria, last week there were protests by agricultural producers against increased grain shipments from Ukraine, for which Brussels temporarily lifted duties.
