Despite losses in eastern Ukraine, dairy production is not stopping but shifting to central and western regions, said Vitaliy Koval, Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine, at the conference “Dairy Industry: Ukraine – EU.”
The minister noted that 125 dairy farms are currently being built or modernized in Ukraine.
He expressed confidence that the stability of the dairy business is an example for the entire economy, and that the effective distribution of margins between producers, processors, and retailers is not only a matter of economics but also of trust.
“Only synergy between all participants can provide the economies of scale that will allow creating added value both in the country and for export. I am grateful for the open and professional dialogue. It was a fruitful conversation, which I am convinced will have practical results for the industry,” Koval emphasized.
At the same time, he noted that pricing is the key to fairness in the chain and called on producers to move from raw materials to finished products.
“A ton of Ukrainian agricultural exports costs an average of EUR 291. For comparison, in the EU it is EUR 1,536. This is the difference between a raw material economy and an added value economy. Our task is to ensure that the share of livestock and processing reaches over 50% in the agricultural sector,” the Minister of Agricultural Policy concluded.
