Grain from Ukraine

Subject: Grain from Ukraine

In connection with media reports about non-compliant grain entering the EU market from Ukraine, could the Commission please the following questions:

1. How did grain classified as technical find its way into food products? Will the Commission carry out an investigation?

2. In view of the threat to the stability of EU grain production and sales, is the Commission considering reintroducing customs duties on agricultural products, and how does the Commission intend to support farmers affected by the sharp fall in grain prices?

3. Does the situation of lower-quality products entering the EU market from Ukraine only concern grain? Media reports also mention poultry and other products. Does the Commission have any knowledge of this?

Submitted: 12.4.2023

Answer given by Executive Vice-President Dombrovskis on behalf of the European Commission (7 June 2023)

The Commission is aware of the concerns expressed by some Member States and some stakeholders regarding imports, especially grains, from Ukraine.

On 28 April 2023, a deal in principle was reached between the Commission and the five Member States. As part of this deal, on 2 May 2023, the Commission adopted exceptional and temporary preventive measures (1) to alleviate logistical bottlenecks for four products originating in Ukraine (maize, wheat, rapeseed, sunflower seed).

Under this measure, the four products continue to be released for free circulation in all EU Member States except Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.

The products can continue to transit via these five Member States by means of a common customs transit procedure or go outside the EU.

The package includes the commitment to work to facilitate the transit of Ukrainian grain exports via the Solidarity Lanes, and a second tranche of agricultural financial support to affected farmers worth EUR 100 million. The Commission had already provided a first financial support package of EUR 56.3 million for the most affected farmers (2).

The four Member States that had taken national measures committed to withdrawing them. Poland withdrew them on 2 May 2023, Bulgaria on 3 May 2023 and Slovakia on 12 May 2023 (with effect on 15 May 2023).

The notion of technical grains is not defined in EU law. The Commission understands that this concept exists in Poland to define a type of grains used for industrial purpose, which is not allowed to enter food and feed chains as these grains are not subject to any sanitary controls in accordance with Polish law.

The Commission does not have information that poultry meat of lower quality is imported from Ukraine to the EU. All imported food must comply with the relevant EU legislation.

1 ∙ ⸱ https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32023R0903

2 ∙ ⸱ https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2023/739