April 16, 2024

Hungary to tighten control on agricultural products as EU seeks to renew trade liberalisation with Ukraine

Hungary announced on April 11 that it would tighten controls on the import of the agricultural products, for which it had banned the import of from Ukraine in 2023.

This comes as the European Union moves to renew trade liberalisation with Ukraine. Hungary's control measures will apply to agricultural products, regardless of their origin.

The country said it will establish a reporting obligation for companies in Hungary importing any agricultural products for which imports from Ukraine have been banned – including some grains, oilseeds, eggs and poultry. These companies would have to notify the Hungarian Food Chain Authority in order to prove that their products did not come from Ukraine. Notification must be made electronically by an entity selling the product or organising the transport.

Hungarian Agriculture Minister István Nagy presented the measure at a press conference on April 11. The provision is part of a five-point government package to tackle farmers' concerns, which also includes an increase in agricultural diesel subsidies.

The European Parliament and the Council of the EU have recently reached a hard-fought deal extending Ukraine's trade benefits until June 2025.

Hungary, Poland and Slovakia introduced unilateral bans on Ukrainian agricultural imports in September 2023 to stem a surge in imports from the country. The EU lifted trade restrictions following the outbreak of Ukraine's all-out war with Russia.

According to Nagy, granting trade benefits to Ukraine has led to “severe oversupply and significantly low prices” in the EU agri-food market.

- Euractiv