The European Parliament adopted the decision allowing Ukraine to export seeds to Europe, the trade representative of Ukraine Taras Kachka announced on Oct. 8.
During the meeting on Oct. 7, 491 members of the European Parliament agreed that Europe can import Ukrainian seeds because their quality meets the European standards; 159 lawmakers voted against the decision and 47 people abstained from voting. No quotas for export have been introduced at the current stage.
To close the deal, the Council of the European Union has to support the parliament’s decision.
For Ukraine, it is a profitable bargain — the country expects the seed export business to be worth $100 million, said Romain Desthieux, the chairman of the board at the Ukrainian Seed Association.
According to Kachka, seeds export will also ramp up the trade between Ukraine and Europe — the country’s largest trading partner. Foreign investments into Ukraine’s agriculture are expected as well, Kachka said.
In 2019, Ukrainian exports to the European Union amounted to €19.1 billion and mostly consisted of raw materials like iron, steel, and agricultural products. Over 14,500 local companies were exporting their goods to the EU in 2019.
The Ukrainian export will improve seeds production in Europe because the EU wants to grow crops in different climate zones, the European Parliament said.
According to Desthieux, Ukraine has long struggled to enter the European seed market because it couldn’t comply with all the requirements.
Seed production is a strategic market for European farmers valued at nearly €16.7 billion in 2020. The EU is also the largest seed exporter in the world — in 2019 seed export reached €8,3 billion with a trade surplus of €2,2 billion.
Because the standards for seeds in Europe are high, it took Ukraine nearly nine years to get confirmation from the EU experts that the country has high-quality seeds and is ready to export them to Europe. According to Desthieux, it mainly concerns cereals seeds like corn.
