Bulgarian farmers are protesting against cheap grain imports from Ukraine. They decided to block the roads and land crossing points the grain trucks pass.
This is reported by agropolska.pl.
The Deputy Chairman of the Association of Grain Producers of Bulgaria, Iliya Prodanov, noted that Ukrainian grain should pass through Bulgaria in transit, but in fact, some of it remains in the country. It is not only about wheat grain and sunflower seeds but also about barley.
He emphasized that plant protection products used in Ukraine are cheap, dangerous, and banned in the EU. But he added that imports without proper phytosanitary control are dangerous for Bulgarian consumers.
According to farmers' representatives, in recent weeks, about 280,000 tons of sunflower seeds arrived in Bulgaria, which, after processing in the country, entered the market as a Bulgarian product.
"Bulgaria is a major grain exporter. 2 million tons of last year's wheat are still stored in warehouses, and the new harvest, although smaller than last year, is estimated at about 6 million tons. This is three times more than domestic consumption," said Iliya Prodanov, addressing the Ministry of Agriculture with a request to protect domestic manufacturers and stop illegal imports.
We will remind that the first grain barge from the Ukrainian Danube port of Reni arrived at the Bulgarian port of Varna on July 20.
