The European Union studies intervening in agricultural markets in the face of the Russian invasion of Ukraine

The European Commission (EC) confirmed that it is studying the possibility of applying exceptional market intervention measures to deal with the effects on the agricultural sector of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

“The EC is working on the implementation of exceptional market measures that must be finalized, built, to be ready as quickly as possible,” declared the French Minister of Agriculture, Julien Denormandie, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the European Union ( EU).

The politician expressed himself in this way after the video conference of EU Agriculture Ministers held this Wednesday to analyze the impact of the war in Ukraine on the agricultural sector.

Ukraine is one of the main exporters of wheat, corn, sunflower, flour and sunflower oil, so the stoppage of its sales has impacted international prices of raw materials for animal feed.

The European Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski, specified that these intervention measures in the markets could focus on the pork sector, but also mentioned private storage, which implies the granting of European aid to withdraw product from the market in a temporary to recover prices, with the aim that by reducing supply, the amounts improve.

“We have to do a whole analysis to see what results we get from that reflection. A crisis reserve, another possibility, we are also going to study it, ”she commented. This agricultural reserve serves to finance market measures in times of crisis.

To deal with the impact of the war in the short term, Denormandie reported that the ministers also advocated “doing everything to release the potential of agricultural production from now on for the campaigns that can start today.”

“Crop cycles do not always allow us to launch any type of crop, but there are some that are possible, such as protein crops, which provide interesting elements, above all, to feed livestock,” he explained.

The minister explained that during the meeting it was proposed to be able to use fallow land to produce proteins in them.

“The commissioner has told us that he was personally in favor of such a measure, but that there would have to be internal debates within the Commission and that he would quickly tell us what his opinion is,” Denormandie explained.

Likewise, the mobilization of the group of experts of the Food Security Crisis Response Mechanism and of high-level groups on pork or poultry was requested.

Also in the short term, the ministers agreed “to be able to mobilize international bodies, beyond Europe, that have an important role”, according to Denormandie, such as the Rapid Response Forum of the Agricultural Market Information System, G20, G7 or FAO.

In the longer term, the ministers emphasized the importance of guaranteeing European food security and, in this sense, the door was opened to reassess the community strategies for biodiversity and “From farm to table”, with which seeks more sustainable food production and consumption.

“Food security is in danger and, therefore, those objectives that we have set for ourselves in these two strategies have to be re-examined in light of this new situation,” said the commissioner, but stressed that it is not about leaving aside those initiatives.

He specified that the war will have a special impact on the primary sector of Poland, Germany or the Netherlands, as well as on the countries closest geographically to Russia, such as Estonia, Latvia or Lithuania.

According to the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, last year Spain exported agri-food products worth 175 million euros to Ukraine, while imports amounted to 1,027 million euros (2.5% of the total), including cereals, especially everything, corn, and sunflower oil.

The Spanish minister, Luis Planas, asked the EC to adopt urgent measures to ensure the supply in the European market of the products most affected by the war in Ukraine, especially cereals and oilseeds, and assured that “we are not only concerned about prices , but also the availability of raw materials”, according to the Ministry in a statement.

In the agricultural field, Planas pointed out that this conflict is triggering an increase in the prices of raw materials and uncertainty about their supply, which mainly affect the livestock sector and which are added to the problems derived from the drought in the Iberian Peninsula.

To alleviate this situation, Spain asked the Commission to activate the mechanisms provided for in the Common Organization of Agricultural Markets, to grant support to the most affected sectors.

Faced with a possible prolongation of the conflict, he expressed the need for the Commission to study measures to adapt the direct aid of the Common Agricultural Policy to the new scenario, so that it is possible to increase the availability of areas destined for the production of cereals and oilseeds.