ELISABETH SVIATKIVSKA, coordinator of the SMPU Eurointegration Commitee: Ukraine, as a big agricultural country, will significantly change the current common agricultural policy of the EU

You recently participated in the International Forum of Dairy Cooperatives in Białystok. Your presentation was devoted to the Ukrainian dairy industry movement to the EU. What were the delegates interested in? What problems, in your opinion, are the biggest concern of Polish dairy farmers now? European farmers?

Given our geographical proximity, close economic ties and our goal of EU integration, Polish representatives of the dairy industry have a number of critical questions and interests regarding Ukraine’s accession to the EU.

Of course, the first concern is competition. What impact will Ukrainian dairy products have on the Polish and EU markets?  However, they are more concerned about whether the same standards and requirements that currently exist in the EU will be applied to Ukrainian products.

Today, Polish farmers are dissatisfied with the strengthening of requirements for sustainable development related to the environment and other norms within the framework of the “green” agenda. It significantly complicates production and makes it more expensive, especially for small farmers. So, they are worried that they may find themselves in unequal conditions. However, Ukrainian milk producers and processors need to adapt to these requirements in order to join the EU common market.

The issue of subsidies is also acute because subsidised European agriculture is less competitive compared to Ukrainian agriculture, which operates without subsidies. However, with the accession of Ukraine to the EU subsidy system, it should be fundamentally revised. There are fears and understanding that Ukraine, as a large agricultural country, will significantly change the current EU common agricultural policy

Understanding the fears of Polish milk market representatives, in my presentation, I focused on the three most common myths about the Ukrainian dairy market, which often hinder an objective assessment of the Ukrainian dairy industry’s potential.

Myth 1: The Ukrainian agricultural market belongs to oligarchs

In fact, the structure of ownership in the Ukrainian agricultural sector is diverse. There are big agricultural holdings, but also a significant number of medium and small farms, which play an important role in milk production. It was important to explain that households are not farmers in the European sense and practically do not produce milk for industrial processing.

Myth 2: Ukrainian dairy products are of low quality

In fact, this is far from the case. Modern Ukrainian dairy enterprises are equipped with the latest equipment and work in accordance with the European quality standards. Ukrainian dairy products are regularly certified and exported according to market requirements, including to the requirements of the EU. 58 enterprises already support the requirements of European legislation.

Myth 3: The production of value-added goods will be poorly developed in Ukraine

To debunk this myth it is enough to simply show Ukrainian trade networks’ shelvesv, where there is a wide range of domestic products for every taste and wallet, including the segment of organic products, which is so popular in the EU. Debunking these myths is an important step towards joint work on the integration of Ukrainian dairy industry into the EU market and understanding the real state of affairs.

– How much time do you think it will take for the Ukrainian dairy industry to reach European standards?

It is difficult to estimate specific time frames for full adaptation of European legislation. First, it is constantly changing and new requirements are added. We are in a state of war, which makes this process quite difficult. After all, adaptation is not only a change in legislation – it is its implementation and execution. Many changes require investment. Foreigners are cautious about investments at the moment. But even at this time, Ukrainian producers continue to build new farms and carry out reconstruction of enterprises. Moreover, as a rule, they are already taking into account the European norms, even those that are not yet legislated in our country.

– What is the European integration committee of the SMPU currently working on?

The Eurointegration Committee has done the preliminary screening of legislation related to the dairy industry, and today we can say that at the level of legislation, in matters of safety and traceability (albeit with transition periods and delays), we meet EU requirements by 80-90%. In other areas, such as requirements for the common market, adaptation of terms and definitions, there is a lot of work to do. This will be the focus of the Committee in the coming months. Areas such as animal welfare also require attention, although there is an understanding of the approaches here, and the main obstacle is the need for investments to implement the relevant requirements.

Acdnother area that we plan to cover as part of the work on adapting Ukrainian legislation to European legislation is the sustainable development of the environment. This is a new topic for us. Moreover, at the EU level, too, it causes many discussions and there is an impression that it is not fully understood even by the European participants of the milk market. Sustainable development involves achieving a balance between economic, social and environmental aspects. This means that the dairy industry must be not only productive, but also sustainable, minimizing its negative impact on the environment. It is a broad topic that covers issues such as: reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, optimization of water use, reduction of soil and water pollution, biodiversity, waste minimization and resource reuse, animal welfare, social responsibility and fair working conditions for farmers and dairy workers.

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