WARSAW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th July, 2023) Polish farmers demand a ban on frozen raspberries import from Ukraine saying it destabilizes the domestic berries market, Polish Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Janusz Kowalski said on Thursday.
"We will tell Brussels that a ban on frozen raspberries imported from Ukraine is a priority," he said during a session of the Polish parliament.
The deputy minister added that 42,000 Polish framers who grow raspberries are awaiting a government decision on this issue. In 2022, they produced 105,000 tonnes of raspberries on 21,000 hectares (51,800 acres) of land and are now� worried about the influx of frozen berries from Ukraine that could destabilize the market prices, he said.
"Because frozen raspberries imports from Ukraine have grown by one third to reach 22,000 tonnes," Kowalski said, adding that "between January and April 2023, the imports grew by additional 117% to 7,000 tonnes."
The Polish government has been searching for a solution to excessive raspberry imports issue. They are expected to start buying excessive amounts of berries from farmers shortly.�
In late March, the prime ministers of Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia published a joint open letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, calling for measures to counteract the negative effects of the increased imports of Ukrainian agricultural products.� � �
�On April 15, Poland, together with Hungary, banned imports of Ukrainian agricultural products until June 30, citing the need to protect domestic farmers from the uncontrolled influx of cheap grain. Slovakia followed suit on April 17 and Bulgaria on April 19.
On May 2, the European Commission banned the sale of Ukrainian wheat, maize, rapeseed, and sunflower seed in Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia until June 5 in a bid to "alleviate logistical bottlenecks," but allowed their circulation in other European markets. The ban was later extended until September 15.
