The additional support is intended as compensation for market disruptions following European aid measures for Ukraine. Earlier, the EU had already allocated 56 million euros for these compensations.
Behind the scenes, intense bureaucratic talks are currently taking place between the EU, the five neighboring countries, and Ukraine about technical possibilities to ensure that Ukrainian exports are actually exported and not traded on the markets in the neighboring countries. The protests from the five neighboring countries are not only directed against the grain trade but also against the duty-free import of meat and other food products.
In Eastern Europe, the agricultural sector is heavily affected by the European aid measures for Ukraine. This country has the largest grain harvest in the world, and a large part goes to EU countries. However, due to the aid measures, the grain price has dropped significantly, and farmers in Ukraine’s neighboring countries face competition from cheap Ukrainian grain on the local market. This results in farmers in these countries earning less and their local economies suffering damage.
Critics say that the Polish complaints about their stalled grain sales are exaggerated because Poland achieved more agricultural and food exports last year than in previous years. Europe columnist Carolien de Gruyter of NRC Handelsblad shows that Poland has made substantial efforts to attract more European funds. For example, the country pressured the European Commission to expand the support scheme for farmers in Eastern Europe.
According to some reports, Poland exported more agricultural and food products in 2022 than in previous years. In addition, Poland received significantly more European subsidies in 2022 than in previous years. In total, Poland received 12.5 billion euros in agricultural subsidies, which is a 70 percent increase compared to 2021.
The Polish blockade of the transit of Ukrainian agricultural products is also viewed within Polish politics as election rhetoric. Parliamentary elections will be held in Poland later this year.
The ruling conservative PiS party appears to be losing support among their electorate in the Polish countryside, a trend that started about two years ago when the government failed to control the African Swine Fever (AVP) outbreak. Furthermore, the introduction of EU rules means that many Polish rural residents no longer meet traditional subsidy criteria.
On Monday, the European Parliament’s agriculture committee will discuss the current state of affairs. The agriculture ministers of the EU countries will meet a day later in Luxembourg to discuss the matter. In Romania and Poland, the ban on Ukrainian grains has now been lifted, while they are still awaiting a final decision from the European Commission.