The Government of Ukraine has canceled the ban (in the form of zero quotas) imposed on March 5 this year on the export of sugar and millet.
According to the Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers No. 549 dated May 7, sugar and millet are now included in the list of goods whose export is subject to licensing.
Earlier, the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Rada (VAR) proposed to the government to allow the export of millet, setting its quota of 80 thousand tons, since there is an excess of this crop in the country.
VAR referred to the data of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy for February 2022, according to which in Ukraine in the 2021/2022 marketing year (MY, July-June) 182 thousand tons of millet were produced, the carryover balance from 2020/2021 MY amounted to 18 thousand tons, while the average domestic consumption of millet in the country does not exceed 80 thousand tons, and export expectations for MY 2021-2022 – 80 thousand tons.
In addition, as of April 21, 2022, 4.8 thousand hectares of millet have already been sown in Ukraine, which is significantly more than on the corresponding date in 2021 – 0.9 thousand hectares.
This is the second such decision to lift the export ban. Previously, on April 10, it was replaced by licensing for live bovine animals (UKTVED code 0102), frozen bovine meat (code 0202) and meat and edible meat offal, salted or in brine, dried or smoked; edible flour from meat or meat by-products: cattle meat (code 021020).
Thus, rye, oats, buckwheat and salt suitable for human consumption, fertilizers (except nitrogen, for which the quota was increased to 210 thousand tons per quarter) remained on the list of zero export quotas.
Main trade partners of Ukraine in % from total volume (export from Ukraine to other countries) in 2021
SSC of Ukraine
Since the beginning of the 2021/2022 marketing year (MY, July-June) and as of May 5, Ukraine has exported 46.0 million tons of grain and leguminous crops, which is 17.9% or 7.0 million tons higher than on the same date of the previous MY.
According to the Information and Analytical Portal of the Agroindustrial Complex of Ukraine, by May 5, 18.53 million tons of wheat were exported (22.5% more compared to the same date in 2020/2021MY), 21.33 million tons of corn (+11.4%), 5.68 million tons of barley (+37.8%) and 69.7 thousand tons of flour (-34.4%).
161.9 thousand tons of rye were also delivered to foreign markets against only 1.7 thousand tons a year earlier.
Thus, for the week of April 28 – May 5, Ukraine exported about 300 thousand tons of grain crops, including almost 270 thousand tons of corn, 20 thousand tons of wheat and 10 thousand tons of barley. Such a decline is explained by the blockade by the troops of the aggressor country of the Russian Federation of Ukrainian seaports – its key export infrastructure.
As reported, in 2020/2021, Ukraine exported 44.72 million tons of grain and leguminous crops, including 16.64 million tons of wheat, 23.08 million tons of corn, 4.23 million tons of barley. Also, 126.9 thousand tons of flour and 18.4 thousand tons of rye were delivered to foreign markets.
In addition, Ukraine exported 56.72 million tons of grain and leguminous crops in 2019/2020 MY.
Deputy Head of the Office of the President Rostyslav Shurma in March called the goal of Ukraine in 2022 to harvest at least 70% of last year’s crop.
Foreign trade turnover by the most important positions in 2021 (export)
SSC of Ukraine
Structure of export of services in 2021 (graphically)
SSC of Ukraine
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine instructed the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food to issue licenses for the export of nitrogen mineral and chemical fertilizers in the amount of up to 210,000 tonnes by July 1, 2022, before that, the Ministry of Economy issued permits for supplies.
The corresponding resolution on the change of the licensee body (No. 458) of April 26 was published on the government website.
“The issuance of licenses for the export of goods specified in this paragraph of the notes is carried out on the basis of applications within a quota of 70,000 tonnes per month and on the basis of approvals that are provided by the Ministry of Agrarian Policy within one day without involving a subject of foreign economic activity in the order of interdepartmental exchange of information,” the decision says.
Earlier, by resolution No. 353 of March 24, the Cabinet of Ministers lifted the ban on the export of nitrogen fertilizers that it had introduced in early March, setting an export quota of up to 210,000 tonnes of products for the period until July 1, 2022. At the same time, the monthly export volume should not exceed 70,000 tonnes per month.
As reported, in early March, the government imposed a ban on the export from Ukraine of nitrogen, phosphorus and potash mineral or chemical fertilizers, as well as complex multi-component fertilizers.
Thus, the export of phosphate, potash and multicomponent fertilizers is still prohibited.
“I emphasize that this ban is of a forced and temporary nature and is used to restore the balance of certain goods in the domestic market and ensure the sowing campaign, which is extremely important in order to prevent a food crisis in Ukraine and the world,” Roman Leschenko, who served as Minister of Agricultural policy of Ukraine at that time, said.
