The European Commission is studying the situation on the poultry, egg and frozen fruit markets and is ready to return to tariff quotas if Ukraine maintains the current scale of their supplies to Europe, EU Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski said.
During the session of parliamentary committee on agriculture, which took place on Monday, he said that at the moment there is no reason to prohibit import of any other goods, except wheat, corn, rapeseed and sunflower, from Ukraine to Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia. These goods are also allowed to transit the territory of these five countries, reports pap.pl.
According to Wojciechowski, market inspections, according to the current legal regime, will end in November, and according to the updated rules, if the procedure begins in June, they will end in September.
“The situation in the poultry market is not only local, but European-wide, and it is very likely that if imports do continue on this scale in the current months, there will be a return to the tariff quotas that were in place before liberalization,” he said.
As the commissioner said, the EC is monitoring the situation in the egg market. There is an increase in imports, and this is also covered by the excessive import procedure. “If this procedure shows excessive imports, there will be quotas or an import ban,” he added.
According to Wojciechowski, imports of frozen fruit from Ukraine to the EU reached 44,000 tons in 2022, an increase of 18.9 percent from 37,000 tons in 2021.
“This situation will be controlled. If during the season it becomes clear that there is a threat to Polish, European producers, the European Commission is ready to impose restrictions even in an emergency, express mode. It depends on the situation during the season, how the situation will develop in the coming months,” he stressed.
According to the Commissioner, since April 2022 until the end of March 2023, Ukraine exported 48 million tons of wheat, corn, rapeseed and sunflower seeds, 24 million tons of which were sent to Africa and Asia, about 24 million tons – to the EU countries, 10.3 million tons of which – to the five frontline countries.
Voytsekhovskyy specified that 4.1 million tons of Ukrainian grain arrived in Poland, of which 3.3 million tons remained in the country, and 700 tons were in transit.
The largest transit country, through which the Ukrainian grain passed, was Romania, through which 9 million tons passed, of which 2.5 million tons remained in the country.
As Voytsekhovskyy stated, there was no uncontrolled import of grain from Ukraine to the EU. Because of the growing problem in the frontline countries, a temporary import ban was imposed on Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia. “Existing restrictions are ‘likely’ to be extended,” wrote the Polish publication.
The European Commissioner recalled that free trade with Ukraine is very beneficial to the Polish economy. In 2022, almost 10 billion euros of goods were exported from Poland to Ukraine, and less than 6 billion zlotys (EUR 1.254 billion) were imported. At the same time, he noted that this is 1/3 of all EU exports, the value of which was EUR30 billion. In second place is Germany with exports of EUR4 billion.
“If someone asked me why I am in favor of liberalization of trade with Ukraine, it is only because not only political but also economic reasons demanded it,” the Polish edition quoted the European commissioner as saying.
Ukrainian producers in December 2022 got the right to export poultry and poultry products to Canada and fish products to Turkey, the website of the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection (Derzhsprodpotrebbezopasluzhba) said on Wednesday.
According to her, the new markets for business are open thanks to the joint work of the department, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and foreign embassies.
The relevant work to open the Canadian market for Ukrainian poultry meat and meat products began back in 2019, when representatives of the Canadian certification body CFIA conducted an inspection of the state production control system at Ukrainian enterprises. A list of Ukrainian companies that are now allowed to export poultry meat and poultry products to Canada has been added to the CFIA database, and requirements for importing meat products from Ukraine to Canada have been published on the organization’s official web portal.
According to the Service, in December Ukraine also received the right to export fish products to Turkey for export. The form of the relevant certificate has already been posted on the official web portal of the State Service of Ukraine for the Protection of Consumer Rights.
As reported, during the martial law in Ukraine has increased the number of enterprises-producers of products of animal origin, which have the right to export their products to the European Union. Their number increased by 33 (or 8.5%) compared with winter 2021 – up to 418 from 385. The number of Ukrainian exporters of dairy products increased the most – by 11, fish products – by six, snails and products from them – by five.
The cancellation by the UK of all duties and quotas on products from Ukraine to support it in the face of a military invasion by the Russian Federation may allow Ukrainian farmers to increase their presence in the UK markets of poultry meat, walnuts, honey, cranberries, blueberries and peas.
The list of high-margin agricultural products that Ukraine could supply to the UK at a time when the export of its traditional agricultural raw materials is blocked by the aggressor country of the Russian Federation was published on the website of the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club (UCAB) on Wednesday evening.
According to the results of 2021, agricultural products worth $553 million were exported from Ukraine to the UK, including sunflower oil (31% of export earnings), rapeseed (28%) and corn (24%). However, the supply of traditional agricultural crops in 2022 is difficult due to the naval blockade of Ukraine by Russian warships, as a result of which the country can potentially increase the export of a number of other agricultural products by road.
Ukrainian farmers, in particular, can focus their export efforts on the supply of poultry meat to the UK. The volume of its export in 2021 was 2,600 tonnes. The share of Ukraine of UK imports is 1%. Main competitors: the Netherlands, Poland, and Belgium.
The export of walnuts without shells is also promising. The volume of its export in 2021 was 0700 tonnes. The share of Ukraine of UK imports is 6%. Main competitors: the United States, Germany, and China.
According to the UCAB, Ukrainian farmers can increase honey exports to the UK (800 tonnes were delivered in 2021). The share of Ukraine of UK imports is 1%. Main competitors: China, Poland, and Mexico.
The export of cranberries and blueberries is also promising (supplies in 2021 – 200 tonnes). The share of Ukraine of UK imports is 0.3%. Main competitors: Spain, Peru, and Chile.
Ukraine exported 4,900 tonnes of peas to the UK in 2021, which amounted to 12% of the UK market in 2021. At the same time, Russia is Ukraine’s main competitor in this market, which, taking into account the economic sanctions imposed against it, adds an advantage to Ukrainian suppliers.
“Now the railways and seaports of neighboring countries are heavily loaded due to the export of grain crops, the volumes of which we have the largest. Therefore, to increase export earnings, we should focus on the export of goods that have a higher price with less weight and thus export by road,” UCAB cites a promising export model from its analyst Svitlana Lytvyn.
BERRIES, HONEY, PEAS, POULTRY, UK, UKRAINIAN FARMERS, WALNUTS
Japan on August 2 lifted the ban on the export of Ukrainian poultry and eggs, introduced in December 2020 in connection with the spread of pathogenic avian influenza in Ukraine, according to a Wednesday posting on the website of the State Service for Food Safety and Consumer Protection.
“We are not only creating new export opportunities for Ukrainian companies, but also restoring access to foreign markets that were closed for one reason or another. Such closure decisions are usually made quickly, and it takes a long effort to convince partners to reopen the market. I am glad that we managed to convince the Japanese partners of the safety of Ukrainian products, and from now on Ukrainian companies can again export their products,” the authority said, citing Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba.
The authority said that the Ukrainian side informed its Japanese partners in detail about the measures taken in Ukraine to combat outbreaks of avian influenza.
Myronivsky Hliboproduct (MHP) sold 174,260 tonnes of poultry in October-December 2020, which is 10% more than in the same period in 2019.
According to the company’s report on the London Stock Exchange, poultry sales as a whole grew by 4% for the year, to 698,020 tonnes.
MHP clarified that poultry exports in the fourth quarter rose by 8%, to 94,710 tonnes, and in general for the year by 5%, to 373,730 tonnes.
According to the report, the average price of one kg of poultry last year (excluding VAT) decreased by 5% in hryvnias from 2019, to UAH 36.11, and in dollars – by 9%, to $ 1.34. In the fourth quarter, the average price was UAH 38.49, or $ 1.36, which, respectively, is 11% more and 5% less than in the fourth quarter of 2019.
“The 12-month 2020 average chicken meat price was UAH 36.11 ($ 1.34), which is 5% lower in hryvnia terms (9% less in dollars) compared to chicken price in 12 months of 2019, mainly driven by the product mix change in exports (significant decrease in sales of fillet to the EU and increased sales to MENA) and weaker prices on breast fillet in EU as many global competitors experienced reduced demand, which resulted in excess stocks,” the report says.
The company also clarified that Slovenian-based Perutnina and its production in Croatia and Serbia, whose figures will now be given separately as a European operating segment, sold 15,170 tonnes of chicken in the fourth quarter, which is 7% more than in the fourth quarter of 2019. In general, for the year its sales amounted to 63,010 tonnes against 59,800 tonnes in 2019, while prices for European chicken in the fourth quarter decreased by 6%, to EUR2.48 per kg, and for the whole of 2020 by 4%, to EUR2.52 per kg.
“After a temporary decrease in utilization of poultry production capacity in Q1 (by 10% from February to the end of March 2020 as a result of the avian influenza outbreak in Ukraine), since the beginning of Q2 all the company’s poultry production facilities have been operating at full capacity. There were several outbreaks of the avian influenza in Ukraine in December 2020, however, the company continued to export poultry meat to its major markets (except to the EU banned market). None of MHP poultry complex were affected with avian influenza by the time of pre-close trading update release,” according to the document.
“Poultry production volumes in Q4 2020 remained relatively stable, constituting 189,687 tonnes. In 2020 poultry production volumes were relatively stable and constituted 731,279 tonnes,” the company said.
Imports of poultry meat from Ukraine into the EU countries (hereinafter excluding the United Kingdom) decreased in January-November 2020 by 18.1% compared to the same period in 2019, to 100,880 tonnes, however, the country retained the third place among top three exporters in this segment, according to a report on the website of the European Commission with reference to Eurostat.
According to it, in general, imports of these products into the EU for 11 months of 2020 amounted to 479,000 tonnes, which is 14.3% less than in 11 months of 2019.
Among other large exporters, Brazil reduced imports of poultry meat into the EU by 3.9%, to 213,010 tonnes, Thailand by 24.1%, to 124,520 tonnes, and China by 25.7%, to 15,430 tonnes.
Imports of poultry meat from the EU into Ukraine in January-November 2020 amounted to 134,740 tonnes, decreasing compared to the same period in 2019 by the same 18.1%. According to this indicator, Ukraine also ranked third.
In general, exports of these products from the EU decreased by 4%, to 1.590 million tonnes.
According to the report, in 2020, poultry meat production in the EU is expected to decrease by 2%, to 13.23 million tonnes, and consumption by 1.6%, to 12.43 million tonnes. The largest producers are Poland (19%), Spain (13%), France (12%), Germany (12%), Italy (10%) and the Netherlands (8%).
The European Commission said that the United Kingdom in January-September imported 478,660 tonnes of poultry meat, and exported 658,930 tonnes.
As the State Customs Service of Ukraine said, in 2020, exports of poultry meat from Ukraine in quantity terms increased by 4%, to 431,000 tonnes, while in monetary terms it decreased by 4.1%, to $555 million.
