August 8, 2013

Due to increased production of beef, chicken and pork, Ukraine's meat consumption this year will increase by almost 6% in order to reach 2.4 million tonnes.

Mykola Prysyazhnyuk, Minister of Agriculture, said, "In addition to the economic component of government-supported programmes for livestock, their effect on consumers is also important. On the one hand, there are budgetary subsidies for animals for slaughter and farmers get real money. On the other, it is important to eat more Ukrainian-produced meat. This will gradually lead to rise in financial figures."

According to the head of department, this year, Ukraine will increase meat consumption by almost one kilogramme/person. A positive trend can be made possible through growth of domestic meat production.

"By the end of this year, production of meat in Ukraine will reach 2.4 million tonnes. This reflects a 5.8% increase over last year. Thanks to government-supported programmes, we are able to finally secure an upward trend in livestock production. We are continuing to work on expanding existing programmes and developing new ones, Prysiazhnyuk said.