The tariff quotas of the European Union for Ukrainian honey, grape and apple juice for 2018 have been exhausted, First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Maksym Martyniuk wrote. According to his data, the main quota for duty-free supply of honey from Ukraine to the EU is about 8,000 tonnes, for grape and apple juice some 14,000 tonnes.
There are about 400,000 beekeepers in Ukraine, who produce about 70,000 tonnes of honey.
About 57,000 tonnes of honey is exported, mainly to the European Union.
“The production potential, based on the sowing of honey plants, is up to 140,000tonnes of honey per year, twice as much as the current volume,” he said.
He clarified that now there are no mandatory requirements for the quality of honey in Ukraine. At the same time, within the framework of the association agreement with the EU, Ukraine must implement European requirements for honey quality, which are fixed in Council Directive No. 2001/110/EU by the end of 2019.
