Ukraine’s tariff-free access to the EU has caused a grain glut in neighbouring countries, tanking the regional agricultural sector and leading to complaints that Brussels is paying farmers too little compensation.
After Russia invaded Ukraine last year, the EU scrapped customs duties and quotas on Ukrainian grain imports and rerouted some of the shipments Russia was blocking in Black Sea ports via Polish and Romanian roads and railway networks. But the cheap Ukrainian grain suddenly available in those markets has undercut local producers.
“Farmers in Romania are the most impacted by the transit of grain coming in from Ukraine,” said Alexandru Baciu, who farms about 2,200 hectares of grain in south-east Romania. “They have deposits of unsold wheat from last year’s harvest?.?.?.?We have three months left and we have not managed to sell last year’s harvest because of this transit issue.”