– The reports that Ukrainian grain remains in Poland despite the embargo have not been confirmed, said Deputy Minister of Agriculture Michał Kołodziejczak on Tuesday. He suggested that farmers should protest on a different border, not necessarily the Ukrainian one.
The deputy head of the Ministry of Agriculture said in an interview with Polish Radio 24 that it cannot be said that there are no problems in agriculture, because they do exist and “this is a fact.” In his opinion, it was primarily the fault of the previous governments, which did not solve the problems in agriculture in a systemic way, but simply put a “band-aid on the wound”. According to Kołodziejczak, the cause of the wound was not sought and an appropriate diagnosis was not made. -At this moment, Ukraine has boiled over – he emphasized.
Transit, not import
Kołodziejczak noted that currently Ukrainian grain transits through Poland and is not imported into the country. -Neither wheat, nor corn, nor rapeseed. These products do not stay here, he emphasized.
A representative of the ministry said that over the last few weeks he had received several information about the alleged unloading of Ukrainian goods in Poland, which were only supposed to pass through our country.
-None of this information has been confirmed – he noted, although at the same time he appealed to be sensitive to such situations and report any irregularities.
Kołodziejczak also pointed out that despite the positive trade balance with Ukraine, the Polish agricultural sector suffers from it.
– We are talking about an amount of approximately EUR 3.5 billion (trade balance – PAP), and in agriculture we have a loss of EUR 656 million – he noted.
Protests at the wrong border
-If I protested today, I would block the second border. I don’t want to give anyone a hint here, but Poland has introduced an embargo on products from Ukraine, the ones that bother us the most. Germany, we also see protests in Germany and voices from German farmers that they do not want these products from Ukraine, where we can see that companies buy a lot from Poland, but the government has not introduced an embargo on these products, which are burdensome, and the German market is also left to us taken away by Ukrainian products (…) – said the deputy minister.
Limits needed
According to him, quotas should be introduced for goods from Ukraine entering the Community. Shipping outside the EU should also be made easier.
– At the moment, we are allowing ourselves to be taken away from Western European markets and that is a fact – he summed up.
On Tuesday, numerous protests by farmers took place throughout Poland, blocking, among others, roads, expressways, highways, and border crossings with Ukraine. Farmers will oppose the inflow of Ukrainian goods, as well as European policy related to the so-called Green Deal. (PAP)
