The timely reaction to the avian influenza outbreak in Ukraine allowed the country not to halt imports of poultry from the European Union (EU) and Ukrainian counts on uninterrupted authorization to export Ukrainian poultry to the EU, Deputy Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture Minister, Ukraine’s Trade Representative Taras Kachka has said. “Over the past month, a number of EU Member States have recorded cases of avian influenza. But a timely decision on zoning and a well-functioning communication mechanism allowed Ukraine to not stop the import of poultry meat from the EU for this reason. Therefore, we immediately informed the competent authorities of the EU about the detected case of bird flu in Vinnytsia region,” he wrote on his Facebook page on Thursday.
In addition, Ukraine has suspended certification of exporter capacity in a 30 km zone, while the EU sets requirements for the 10 km zone.
“All these measures are being taken to prove to the whole world that trust allows us to maintain trade in such sensitive situations,” Kachka said.
The deputy minister expects that in such conditions the EU will retain a permit for the import of poultry meat from Ukraine.
“If we were hostile to each other, the EU would have taken this opportunity and tried to close imports from Ukraine in general. This would trigger a chain mechanism of mutual restrictions. (Both sides want to avoid this scenario). In the meantime, we are actively cooperating with EU regulatory authorities so that the reaction is friendly and adequate,” Kachka said.
