EU Member States on Monday 16 May welcomed proposed actions to open up solidarity lanes with Ukraine to facilitate agricultural exports from the war-torn country.
Faced with the blockage of Black Sea ports due to the war in Ukraine (90% of grain sent abroad normally passes through Ukrainian seaports), the European Commission presented, on 12 May, an action plan for “EU-Ukraine solidarity lanes” to facilitate Ukrainian agricultural exports as well as imports to Ukraine (animal feed, fertilisers, humanitarian aid) (see EUROPE 12951/4).
At Monday’s Special Committee on Agriculture (SCA), the European Commission gave an update on the action plan to facilitate Ukraine’s agricultural exports and bilateral trade with the EU. 30 million tonnes of grain are reportedly stored in Ukraine.
The EU has a huge task ahead of it in transporting this grain. The European Commission has identified the main bottlenecks (currently lorries wait 16 days at the border) and wants to work closely with the Member States concerned to remove administrative burdens for moving agricultural products.
The Member States also described the situation on the agricultural markets (https://aeur.eu/f/1nt ), which is marked in particular by the sharp rise in prices and production costs.
Croatia and other Member States have reiterated their wish to receive a response from the European Commission to their request for additional support under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
The Agriculture Council will review the market situation at its next meeting on 24 May. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)