Poland will ban the transit of agricultural products from Ukraine

Polish authorities are set to prohibit the transit of Ukrainian agricultural goods through their territory starting April 1st. Discussions are also nearing completion regarding the regulation of agricultural exports from Ukraine, enabling the implementation of fresh limitations on Ukrainian product imports into Poland. This was disclosed by Krzysztof Hetman, Poland’s Minister of Development and Technology, during an interview with Radio Lublin.

The minister actively supports Polish farmers engaged in protests. The proposed transit ban is primarily aimed at corn, wheat and various other grains. Presently, the export of Ukrainian rapeseed, corn, wheat and sunflower seeds to Poland is restricted. Additional restrictions, in the form of licensing, are being considered for several other products, including sugar, eggs, poultry and fruits, particularly apples. Hetman also emphasized that authorities have recently managed to address other demands raised by protesting farmers.

It is worth reminding that Polish farmers have been blocking border crossings between Poland and Ukraine and demanding a ban on the supply and transit of Ukrainian goods. Due to cheap labor and low quality, Ukrainian products are cheaper than Polish ones, which puts Polish producers at a disadvantage in competition. At the same time, Ukraine has incurred losses amounting to hundreds of millions of euros due to the blockade and this amount continues to grow with each passing day.